We Got Nerve
by Kurrent
Summary: Story 5 in my Lileyverse series. Miley and Lilly have to take charge of their careers like never before as life's changes come at them fast and hard. Enjoy the next steps of their lives together! Liley, as always for me!
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: **Welcome back! I'm so happy to have you back for the fifth story in my Lileyverse! This story begins almost exactly three and a half years after the end of my previous story, "This Is Our Life." It's now October 2013, and Miley and Lilly both have their 22nd birthdays coming up in November. They're growing up so fast, aren't they? Both girls are now seniors in college at USC, and both Hannah's and Lola's careers are still doing well. Expect to see all of our favorite supporting characters, and I promise that I'll have surprises in store for you along the way. Like my previous story, this one might verge into some solidly M-rated territory at times, so consider yourself warned. For those of you making this your first story of mine, I do recommend you go back and read my other stories in order starting with "You and Me, Together." It'll make it much easier to understand where this story is coming from, I promise.

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

I want to dedicate this story to my friend and fellow author **LaughLoveLive**. Life has forced him to take some time off from writing, and I hope that he and his family have better times ahead of them very soon. We're going to miss you and your beautiful stories until you come back, 3L. Best wishes to you and your family, my friend.

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo P.

Chapter 1: Battle Lines

_Just how deep do you believe_

_Will you bite the hand that feeds_

_Will you chew it 'til it bleeds_

_Can you get up off your knees_

_Are you brave enough to see_

_Do you want to change it?_

_--_Nine Inch Nails_, _"The Hand That Feeds"

Miley ran through the light rain as she hurried across the parking lot of the Malibu Airport. It had been three days since she had seen or held Lilly, and she was well and truly in the throes of withdrawal. Lilly had been tied up in New York with Roxy due to several interviews that Lola had to do for the impending release of the first movie with her as the lead actress, and Miley was very much needing her wife, particularly with the turbulent mess her week had become.

Over the last two years Lola had taken small supporting roles in two different films, both times earning excellent reviews for her natural delivery and sharp sense of humor. Last year she had finally been asked about a lead role in a film in pre-production at a small independent studio called Blue-Gray Films. The studio had purchased a script about a young veteran of the second Gulf War who returns home, falls in love and starts a family only to lose her new husband. The young woman then has to abruptly become a mother to her stepchildren while dealing with all the horrors life has thrown at her. When Lola had auditioned for the part, the studio had immediately loved her, and she was offered the role on the spot.

Miley smiled as she slowed down to pass between the automatic doors of the airport terminal. No point in getting stopped by security because she was running when she should have been walking. As Miley checked the information board for Lilly's flight, she was happy to see that it was running on time. At least that was going right.

The past three months had been unusual for Miley, in that Hannah's record company was becoming more of a pain in the ass every week. Hannah's current contract with the record company was ending in three months, and negotiations had been anything but friendly. Poor health had forced Hal Bruton, the long-time CEO of the record company, to retire two months ago, much to Miley's regret. He had been present since Hannah's meteoric career first began, and Miley had always looked at him as more of a grandfather figure than an executive. He had extended trust to Hannah several times over her career, and she had always repaid him generously.

So Miley and Lilly were both at a loss as to why the new administration at Dyseni Records didn't seem that interested in re-signing Hannah to another contract. To make matters worse, Robbie Ray Stewart, Hannah and Lola Montana's long-time manager, had been in Misty Hollow, Tennessee, for the last three weeks. Miley's grandmother Ruthie Stewart had broken her tibia when a horse had kicked her on her farm. True to Ruthie's nature, she had managed to wrangle the horse back into the barn and then make her way back to her house on her broken leg before she called for her son Bobby Ray to take her to the hospital. Robbie Ray had flown out to Tennessee to run his mother's farm for the time being, as Bobby Ray had his own business and farm to manage; there had never been any question of hiring someone else to manage things, as the family farm had been and always would be managed by family.

As Miley finally reached the gate for Lilly's plane, she was relieved to see that there was a substantial crowd waiting. That meant that the plane hadn't started to unload yet, if it had even arrived by now. She found an unoccupied place along a wall that faced the door coming into the gate and leaned herself up against it, unwilling to sit down and risk someone blocking her view. As soon as Lilly came through that door, she was going to have an armful of Miley to greet her.

As Miley started to count the minutes, her attention drifted across the hall to a small gift shop. She smiled as she spotted a display with balloons and flowers. She glanced around, relieved to see that no one seemed eager to swoop in and claim her vantage point along the wall. Quickly she hurried over to the gift shop.

Miley smiled as she thought back to Lilly's first day on the set of her movie, nearly a year ago now. Several roles still needed to be filled, but Lilly had already read through the script three times, often discussing it with Miley. Technically that was a violation of the nondisclosure agreement, and the director wasn't happy when Lola had informed her that she had discussed the script with her wife. However, the director had calmed down when Lola had produced a second copy of the nondisclosure agreement signed by Hannah.

Miley selected a simple heart-shaped balloon, red of course, and a dozen red roses. She considered for a moment, then she replaced the dozen roses and instead selected a single red rose. Holding a dozen roses would make it difficult to hold Lilly, but a single stem could easily be held to the side. She carefully carried her items to the cashier. She tried not to laugh as she remembered exactly how long it had taken Lilly before she made her director mad enough to quit a second time: two hours. _And eleven minutes_, Lilly would have added proudly. That was how long they had talked about the script before Lilly had stated adamantly that she wasn't comfortable doing a steamy love scene.

"_The only person I let touch me like that is my wife, and you better believe that I'm sure as heck not putting my hands where the script says!" Lilly said loudly, leaning across the small table where she, the director and the two scriptwriters sat._

"_I will NOT put up with this prima donna bullshit!" screamed Gail Young, the director of the still-untitled project. She had stormed away from the table, slamming the door behind her as she began screaming for someone to get the producer down to the studio to put the movie's star in her place. Less than twenty minutes later the producer and one of the studio's owners had arrived, and the haggling began in earnest._

"_Look, I'm not comfortable letting someone I don't even know paw me up like it's written in the script!" Lilly said emphatically. "Geez, I've never even fooled around with anybody except my wife!"_

"_So why did you even agree to do the movie?" countered the director. "Did you _read_ the script?" That was a thinly disguised slam at Lilly, because she knew damn well that Lilly had read the script._

"_Yes, of course I did! And I made all sorts of little notes—" Lilly had yelled, waving the pages of the script in the air for emphasis— "about how I thought we could change the scene around so that I wouldn't have some sweaty guy's hands all over me!"_

_The next few minutes hadn't seen much progress, and by now Miley, dressed as Hannah, had arrived on the set. She had been called immediately after the producer, and that move had turned out to be divinely inspired. Miley walked into the conference room as Lilly and the director were just about to start throwing punches at each other, and as soon as she walked in Lilly had pointed at her and shouted, "The only way you're getting me in that bed fooling around with someone is if it's with my wife!"_

_As soon as the words left her lips, everyone in the room froze. Then slowly smiles began to break out._

"_We could bill her as a cameo," one of the writers had said. "Or even a guest star."_

"_And I don't think audiences today would have a problem with it being a lesbian romance," the second writer had added. "Especially with it being a well-known couple that everybody already loves."_

"_Real-life couples are either box office gold or pure poison, though," said Writer #1._

"_Yeah, but it's worth a chance. And Hannah Montana would just increase the draw. We'd have to be really careful to make sure to limit her screen time, though. This is Lola's movie, and we don't want anything to detract from her screen presence."_

"_No no, it won't! The two of them are crazy cute together, and it'll be a natural for the audience to believe they're in love. Hell, they already are!"_

_As the writers, director and producer hurriedly talked, Lilly and Miley had met each other's gaze across the room. Lilly smiled and ran across the room to throw herself into Miley's arms, sniffing deeply to pull as much of her wife's scent into her lungs. Today it was oranges, with a hint of fresh linen, the subtle powdery smell of the Hannah wig and that intoxicating smell underneath everything else, Miley's personal scent, that Lilly had grown dependent on. Once she was satisfied, Lilly had leaned her head back and softly said, "Will you do it for me?"_

_Miley smiled and gently ran her fingers across Lilly's cheek, sending shivers of pleasure down her wife's neck. "Sweetheart, I'll do anything for you," she had said, loud enough for everyone in the room to hear. Miley glanced up to see the writers silently high-fiving each other, grins on their faces. "Heck, I'll even do a couple songs for the soundtrack if you want," she added, looking at the director. And so the movie's other romantic lead, already a cameo part, was cast._

As Miley paid for her purchases, she hurried back across the walkway to her lookout post along the wall. Through the large window she could an airplane slowly approaching the gate. She smiled as she was already thinking about holding Lilly in her arms again. The last few nights had been intensely lonely, even with talking to Lilly on the phone until she was nearly asleep. Their friends Gina Giles and Jamie Escante had spent the night at Miley's and Lilly's house the first night Lilly was gone, but instead of making Miley feel better they had inadvertently made her feel worse. She would never tell them that, but watching them interact with each other had only reminded Miley of how her other half wasn't there. Miley had spent the next two nights alone, but she had also gone through the laundry that hadn't been washed yet and dug out the pajamas that Lilly had worn a few nights earlier. Miley still wasn't sure why Lilly had worn them, but she was glad her wife had; the next two nights Miley had wrapped the pajamas over a pillow and held it while she slept, breathing in the lingering traces of Lilly's unique scent while she slept. And honestly, it did seem to help her rest.

The arrival of someone from the airline at the gate's door drew Miley's attention. Obviously the plane was about to disembark passengers, so Miley stepped slightly forward. She stood on her tiptoes, peering through the crowd that had surged in close. Miley wanted Lilly to be able to see her as soon as she came through that door, and she wasn't going to let some crowd stand in her way. But just as Miley started forward, the door opened up, and less than five seconds later the first of the passengers came through the doorway. Even through the throng of people, blue eyes met blue eyes, and Miley felt her heart swell as Lilly ran toward her, squeezing past those who were too slow to move out of her way.

As Lilly broke free of the crowd, she grinned as she practically skipped across the last fifteen feet between her and her wife, throwing herself into Miley's open arms and hugging the woman she loved as tightly as she possibly could.

"Oh my gosh, I've missed you so much!" Lilly said as she released Miley long enough to grab her by the head and pull her forward for a long, lingering kiss that sent Miley's heart rate through the roof.

By the time they ended the deep kiss, Miley didn't notice or care how many sets of eyes were locked on them. She smiled shyly as she offered the heart-shaped balloon and the single red rose to Lilly. "I missed you so much that I don't ever want you to do any more press again. Not unless I come with you."

Lilly smiled as she took the rose and held it up to her nose, sniffing happily. "It's beautiful," she said, "just like you." She slid even closer, and now Miley was able to wrap her arms around Lilly and hug her warmly. "But you're a heck of a lot sexier than any old flower," Lilly said softly, her lips brushing against Miley's neck. "Let's go get my suitcases, so you can take me home and make love to me."

Miley shivered as she felt her body responding to Lilly powerfully. She kissed Lilly again, a bit quicker this time, then she said, "I've been waiting three days to hear that," smiling as she looked into Lilly's sparkling blue eyes. She took her wife's hand and led her toward the baggage claim. "So did things go—" She found herself silenced by Lilly's fingertips on her lips, making her smile beneath them.

Lilly gently removed her fingers from Miley's lips. "Uh uh. No business talk. Not until we're back home and you've made love to me." Lilly looked thoughtful for a second, then she added, "With each of us getting off at least twice."

Miley laughed as they bumped hips while walking. "Sweetheart, I have missed you _so_ much!"

A little over two hours later found the two of them lying naked on the couch downstairs, a pink silk sheet spread across the couch and a second wrapped around them as they watched television. Miley had seen Lilly's two orgasms each and raised her a third, and the hot touch of skin on skin was making a fourth a distinct possibility before the evening was over.

"So how did the contract talks go?" Lilly asked offhandedly as she clutched Miley's hand to her bare stomach.

Miley sighed loudly as she held Lilly. "More of the same," she said dejectedly. "I just can't believe they're being such jerks about things."

Lilly couldn't believe it either. It was almost like the record company had been waiting for something like Hannah's manager having to go out of town for an extended period to start causing trouble. "How's Mamaw doing?" Lilly asked, hoping to change the subject.

"She's doing okay," Miley said with noticeably more cheer in her voice. "Daddy says she's doin' really well with her therapy, but there's still a lot of swelling in her leg and she's not real stable when she's tryin' to walk."

"They need to send that horse to the glue factory," Lilly mumbled under her breath, but as she heard Miley snicker she realized she had been a bit louder than she had planned. "Sorry." Lilly suddenly remembered a good piece of news that she had for her wife. "Oh! I found us a new manager!" she said excitedly, spinning around so that she was facing Miley but still lying atop her lover. "You know, until your dad comes back out here."

"Really?" Miley asked, smiling. "Oh, you are the _BEST_, girlfriend!" She gave Lilly a warm kiss, and she could feel Lilly slide her body up Miley's slightly, sending surges of excitement through both young women.

"Yeah, I know," Lilly said as she lightly placed a kiss on the tip of Miley's nose. "That's why you married me, remember?"

"Among other things," Miley added, raising an eyebrow suggestively at Lilly. "When do I get to meet him or her?"

"She's going to be in Los Angeles for your meeting with the record company Thursday. I had our attorney send her copies of your current contract, plus I told the record company to send her what they were offering. As sorry an offer as it is."

"I just don't know why the company is so negative about this!" Miley said with a sigh. "I mean, I've been the most successful artist they've ever had! _Ever_!"

Lilly looked down and snuggled a bit more closely to Miley. She hated to say this, but someone had to. "It's probably because of me, Miles. Because of us."

"Super sexy wife of mine say what?" Miley sputtered.

"Why else would the new president of the record company be so hot to get rid of you?"

"He could just not like pop or rock music, Lilly," Miley said, running her fingers through Lilly's blonde hair, not as silky as normal due to it being wet with sweat. "I mean, the first two new acts that the company signed after he came in were a rap act and a country band."

Lilly still wasn't entirely convinced. "I don't know, Miles..."

Miley kissed Lilly on the head, then lightly tickled her ribs.

"Hey!" Lilly shrieked, squirming around for a few seconds before she realized Miley had stopped tickling her.

Miley looked Lilly in the eyes as she said, "I'm not letting some dork at the record company ruin our first night together in four days, and neither are you. Got me, Truscott?"

Lilly grinned. "Yeah, I got you, Truscott," she said, kissing Miley briefly. "We still going ahead with the press conference Thursday after the meeting?"

Miley nodded. "Oh yeah. Even if nothing positive happens at the meeting." She watched a rather spectacular car chase on the television for a moment, then she looked at Lilly again. "So what's this new manager like?"

The twinkle in Lilly's eye wasn't lost on Miley. "Well, she graduated with her MBA from Stanford a few months ago, and she just finished up an internship in New York somewhere. She told me, but I kinda forgot already. But anyway, I talked to her on the phone and told her what we had agreed on as a starting offer, and she agreed to it."

"Wow," Miley said. "She didn't try to negotiate up?"

Lilly laughed, then she said, "No, she said that she wanted to get off on the right foot with us, and that she'd save the bitch part for the record company."

Miley laughed too, and as Lilly laughed again with her, things felt _right_ for the first time all week for both Miley and Lilly. "I think I like her," Miley said.

"Yeah, so do I," said Lilly. "How about our costumes for the Halloween party? Did they come in yet?"

"No, they're supposed to be here by next week sometime," Miley answered.

Both girls had been looking to the Halloween party at Oliver and Ashley's house for months now, ever since the first one last year. The sight of Sarah Sweet chasing Cassie Hughes around the pool with a small jack-o-lantern was still etched in their minds. No one had ever known that for some peculiar reason, Cassie was terrified of jack-o-lanterns, and as soon as Sarah had picked up on that fact, she had immediately used it to her advantage. The chase had ended when Sarah had accidentally dropped the miniature pumpkin into the pool; she had followed the tiny pumpkin of terror into the heated water immediately afterwards when Cassie had thrown her in.

"That party is going to rock," Lilly said with a smile. "And you're going to have the hottest costume there, girlfriend."

"Mmmm, I think you might have me beat, Lil," Miley said. "Are you gonna model yours for me when it gets here?"

Lilly grinned. "Why, Miley Truscott, if I didn't know better I'd think you were getting turned on by the thought of me in a Supergirl costume," she said teasingly.

Miley blushed, but she knew better than to try and deny the truth. She _was_ getting turned on by the thought of Lilly in a Supergirl costume, with her tight abdomen and strong legs on display. She cleared her throat, then she said, "You, uh, didn't answer my question..."

Lilly rested her head against Miley's collarbone as she gently kissed her wife's neck. "Of course I'll give you a private show when my costume gets here, lover," she said softly. Lilly stretched her neck forward just enough to reach Miley's lips, capturing them with her own as she shifted her body until she was straddling her best friend.

Miley gasped as she felt Lilly glide across her stomach, hot and slick and thrilling. "I love you so much, Lilly," Miley said as she gripped her wife's hips and pulled her down, increasing the delicious contact between the two of them. However, before things could go any further, the ringing of the doorbell resounded through the house, startling both young women. "Sweet niblets!" Miley said angrily. She leaned her head back and yelled, "Who is it?!"

"It's your mother- and father-in-law!" called a muffled woman's voice from the other side of the door. "We brought dinner like we had planned!"

"Crap!" said Lilly. "I totally forgot about my parents wanting to come over for dinner!"

Miley pushed Lilly to her feet before she stood herself. "Um, okay, give us just a minute, okay?" she yelled as she tossed the sheer blanket over the couch toward the closet. "Go, Lilly!" she hissed, motioning for Lilly to go upstairs. "I'll get the door!" Miley padded quickly to the door. "Okay, I'm unlocking the door, but wait fifteen seconds before you come in, okay?" she yelled through the door.

After a pause, Meredith Truscott's voice replied, "Alright, Miley. Fifteen seconds."

"Thanks!" Miley yelled back, then she unlocked the door. She spun and started to run to the stairs, but she skidded to a halt when she saw Lilly frantically picking up clothes that had been strewn around the living room. "Lilly!" Miley hissed. "Upstairs!"

"Okay!" Lilly hissed back, pointing a light gray bra at Miley. "I'd already be up there if you hadn't thrown my bra across the room!"

"I was in a hurry!" Miley replied. "Now we've got about five seconds before your parents come through that door!"

"Eeeep!" Lilly said, then she turned and ran for the stairs, Miley hot on her heels. They raced up the stairs, making it to the top as they heard the front door open and then close. Lilly stopped and yelled back down the stairs, "We'll be right down!"

Meredith and Phil Truscott closed the front door once they were both inside. "I made you two some roast and potatoes!" Meredith called out as she carried the covered bowl over to the kitchen. "It should still be warm!"

Lilly's father settled himself into the large overstuffed chair beside the couch, sighing contentedly as he sat down. But before he could turn his attention to the television, Miley and Lilly came bustling down the stairs. They were each wearing a tank top, pink for Miley and yellow for Lilly, with soft navy blue shorts for each of them. "Hey Mom! Hey Dad!" Lilly said happily as she hugged her dad first while Miley went to her mother-in-law.

"Hey Mrs. Truscott," Miley said with a smile. "We're so glad you two could come over for a while!" As Lilly came over to hug her mother, Miley traded and went to her father-in-law. "Feel free to watch whatever you want on the TV, Mr. Truscott," Miley said.

"Miley," Phil replied, "don't you think it's time you started calling us Phil and Merry? I mean, you've been married to our daughter for almost six years now!"

Meredith said loudly, "And if you won't call us by our first names, then for Heaven's sakes give us some grandchildren while we're still young enough to enjoy them!"

"Mom!" said Lilly, poking her mother in the chest. "Be nice!" Lilly had a sneaky smile creep across her face as a positively naughty idea to get her mother back dawned on her. "Miley's trying as hard as she can to get me pregnant, you know," Lilly said, causing her mother's head to whirl around, much like an owl. "I mean, we're trying at least once a day, usually two or three times a d—" Lilly's voice was muffled by a pot holder being firmly clamped over her mouth by her mother, but the shine in her eyes reflected how well her tactic had worked.

"Yes, well, enough of that, Lilly," Meredith said, trying to regain her composure and fan the redness out of her face at the same time. "Some things a mother just doesn't need to know about her daughter."

"That's for sure," muttered Phil. "Miley, do you have the remote? I really was wanting to watch the History Channel. They're having a special on the accountants of ancient Rome and Greece tonight."

Miley was trying not to laugh as she watched Lilly and her mother banter from her vantage point on the couch, just barely registering her father-in-law's request for the remote. "Sure," she politely said as she dug between the cushions for the remote. "Nice one, sweetheart," Miley said a bit more loudly to Lilly, who turned and flashed her wife a thumbs-up as Meredith turned and walked back over to the stove to retrieve two bowls from the cabinets.

Still smiling at her wife, Miley finally felt the remote. She yanked it out from between the cushions and started to hand it to Phil, who was now captured in the grip of a commercial of some sort. However, the look of horror that appeared on Lilly's face made her freeze. Miley looked down at the remote, only to see a rather sultry looking set of red satin panties with the words "Miley's Li'l Devil" printed on the butt dangling from the end of the remote. Miley instantly snatched the panties off of the remote and tossed them over her shoulder, behind the couch.

Lilly scooted across the living room as Phil turned to face Miley. "Oh, you found the remote! Thank you, Miley," he said happily as he took the remote. Miley just grinned her default grin when she didn't trust herself to speak without digging herself or her wife into a deeper hole. Lilly snatched up the panties and put them behind her back just as Meredith turned to carry the two bowls of roast and potatoes to the kitchen table.

"Here's the food!" said Meredith happily.

"Thanks Mom!" said Lilly as she walked across the living room and gave her mother a one-armed hug, surreptitiously tossing the panties into the laundry room with her other arm. "Smells great!"

Before Lilly could pull out her chair, Miley had already done so for her. As she scooted her wife into the table, Miley leaned down and whispered, "You have no idea."

Lilly's sudden coughing fit drew everyone's attention, with Miley gently patting her wife on the back as Meredith got her a glass of peach tea. After a long sip of the sweet tea, Lilly was able to get her coughing under control. She glared across the table at her wife, who was trying her best not to break out laughing. Lilly scooped a piece of potato onto her fork and aimed it at Miley, but when Miley batted her eyelashes and blew Lilly a kiss, her desire for revenge wilted. Instead Lilly reached across the table and took Miley's hand, giving her best friend a loving smile. At the sight of that smile so loving and pure, Miley felt her heart melt all over again for the young woman she knew she would spend the rest of time with. "Sorry if I embarrassed you," Miley said quietly.

"It's okay," Lilly said. "Keeps me on my toes. Now start eating, because I want to catch up on what my brother's been doing at his new job."

Miley smiled and dutifully started eating.

The next two days passed quickly. Miley and Lilly were each taking a light course load this semester, since they had already planned on taking five years to finish college. With Hannah and Lola's careers as well as college, they were both concerned about becoming overwhelmed, so they had planned from the beginning on taking their time. They were paying for their own education, as neither of them had applied for financial aid of any sort. Both Robbie Ray and Lilly's parents had disagreed with that decision, but Miley had stood firm when she declared that neither she nor Lilly were going to take money away from another student who would need it more than them. Paying for five years of college for the two of them was no more a problem than paying for four, given their savings from Hannah's and Lola's careers.

When Thursday rolled around, Miley raced out of her last class of the day and hurried to the School of Cinematic Arts building, where Lilly's last class of the day was. As usual, she spotted Lilly talking with some of her classmates as she approached the SCA building. Before Miley was close enough to yell, Lilly looked up and smiled as she waved to Miley. She excused herself from her friends and powerwalked to meet her wife with a lingering kiss. "How was your class?" Lilly asked, smiling as she took Miley's hand.

"Boring," Miley said with a grin. "Yours?"

"Pretty fun, actually. It'd be more fun if I could tell my teacher exactly what my acting experience really is, though. Watching him choke on his own tongue would be really awesome."

Miley grinned. "Kinda hard acting like you still have stuff to learn, huh?" She laughed as she pondered what she had just said. "Hey, that's funny, you having to act like you don't know how to act already, huh?"

Lilly gave Miley a knowing look out of the corner of her eye. "Nervous about the record company meeting, huh?" she asked. "Because, you know, you always get bogged down on goofy stuff when you get worried about something coming up."

Miley's smile faded. Lilly knew her completely, and she was right. "Yeah, I'm nervous."

They slowly walked toward the parking garage where they had parked their car that day, happy for there to be no one around them at this point. Lilly stayed quiet, holding Miley's hand for support but waiting for her wife to let out some of the worry that had been accumulating the past week.

Finally Miley said, "I just don't get it. I mean, I've sold more albums that anyone else ever in that record company's history, and they're acting like they don't care if I re-sign with them or not."

"So what would happen if you don't re-sign with them?" Lilly asked. "I mean, there's got to be at least a half-dozen companies that'd fall all over themselves to sign you."

Miley nodded. "Yeah, that's probably true. And if no one did want to sign me for some reason—"

"Like if you started spewing toxic waste out of your ears?" Lilly asked teasingly.

"—then I could always just distribute my album myself," Miley finished, pointedly ignoring Lilly's jab. "I mean, Daddy knows a ton of people that'd be willing to produce my album, or I could even do it myself, I guess."

"And that way you could do the album you've been wanting to release for over a year now."

As they had gotten older, Miley found herself writing quite a few songs more oriented toward older teens and young adults. She still wrote songs for all ages and sang songs from throughout Hannah's career during concerts, but she was growing more and more eager to put out a more mature album. "Yeah," Miley said thoughtfully. "I guess. But I really don't want to turn off Hannah's younger fans."

"Then don't," Lilly said, as if it were the simplest thing in the world. "Mark the album as for teens and older and put it in the advertising for it, so there's no confusion."

"And what about a concert for that album? Do I just put up a big sign that says, 'No kids under thirteen allowed' or what? That'd be spitting in the faces of Hannah's younger fans, and I can't do that!"

"No, you can't," Lilly agreed. "Okay, we need to think on this one, huh?" she asked, looking at Miley with that eager face that Miley adored. Bright blue eyes, wide smile, stunning cheeks, hair as golden as an angel...

Miley stopped in her tracks as she locked in on Lilly's face.

"What?" Lilly asked. "Do I have some mustard on my face or something?" She began wiping at her lips, muttering something about hot dogs, when Miley gently took her hand away.

"No," Miley said as she leaned down slightly and pulled Lilly into a deep, intoxicating kiss. After nearly a minute they pulled apart, with the world spinning around them. "Just a lot of beautiful," she said, smiling at how Lilly's eyes brightened at the compliment.

They held hands as they continued their walk to their car. "Those record company people better not be ugly to you tonight, honey," said Lilly. "Because I'm gonna be in there with you this time."

Miley tried not to laugh, because she had expected Lilly would be making up for not being there at the last meeting by being extra-protective this time. "Just try not to get any blood on our clothes, okay Lil?" she said with a giggle.

Lilly gave Miley a quixotic look and replied, "Oh, they don't stand a chance, Miles. Trust me."

And Miley did. With her life, with her career, with her children, and with her future.

Two hours later they were on their way into the record company in Miley's electric blue Roadster. They had slipped on their wigs once they were out of their neighborhood, and idly Miley noted a news van parked outside the record company's headquarters as they pulled around to the parking garage. "Those goobers are a bit early," she said to Lilly as she continued to watch them in the side mirror as they drove past them. She smiled as she said, "Those suits are going to be _so_ ticked off, you know. About the press conference."

"Tough for them," Lilly said as she slid her passcard into the security gate and waved at the security guard. He smiled as he cleared them and raised the access gate to allow them to enter. "They started it when they got ugly with you. If they don't want Hannah Montana and her eight multiplatinum albums, her nine Grammys, and her umpteen Peoples' Choice, Teen Choice, and Kids' Choice awards, then they're just stupid and they don't deserve you." She pulled into their reserved parking place near the elevator and turned to look at Miley as she turned off the engine. "And if you do walk, then you can finally put out the album _you_ want to release, not what they want to release. And do the concerts any way you want to."

Miley looked unsure, and she looked away from Lilly to examine the upholstery for a minute. "I just... I just don't know if I'm ready to do all that, sweetheart. I mean, I'm only twenty-one. Am I really ready to cut loose and go out alone?"

Lilly took Miley's hands and brought them to her lips, kissing both of them softly before she looked into Miley's bright blue eyes. The hint of moisture was evident in those beautiful cobalt eyes, and Lilly could almost see her bottom lip tremble, like it would be doing in a few seconds. "Miley," she said tenderly, "you're never alone. And if anyone in this whole industry is ready for a step like this, it's you. You've been doing this almost half your life, and you've learned more than I'll ever know about this industry. Your dad has been a terrific manager, and even he said that you were ready to take charge of your career."

"But do _you_ think this is the right decision?" Miley asked, her voice pleading as they walked to the elevator.

Lilly put her keycard in the elevator lock, sending it on its way to get them. She then looked into Miley's eyes, glowing beneath Hannah's blonde bangs. "I think that whatever you decide will be the right decision, Hannah." Lilly saw Miley sigh with frustration, so she quickly said, "Honey, I can't make this decision for you. Nobody can except you. What I _can_ do is love you and support you no matter what you choose, and you better believe I'm gonna do that."

The chime of the elevator drew their attention away, and they stepped into the elevator car as soon as the doors were open enough to do so. Miley pressed the button for the administration floor, then she turned and found herself in Lilly's loving embrace.

"Miley," Lilly whispered into her ear, "you could quit this industry right now, and we'd still be able to live comfortably for the rest of our lives. Our kids too. You do what you feel is right, and I'll be there with you."

As those words slipped into Miley's ear, the phrase _our kids too_ echoed inside Miley' mind. _Our kids. I have to __do what's right for our kids and their future._ She saw Lilly pull back, then move in for a kiss which Miley was ready to give her. _Lilly will understand. I know she will._

Seven years ago, facing a similar showdown here, it was Miley who stepped off the elevator and Hannah Montana who walked into the boardroom of Dyseni Records. But today saw Miley and Lilly Truscott step off the same elevator and then stride purposefully down the hallway as Hannah and Lola Montana, walking hand in hand as equal partners. Both of them noticed quite clearly the framed pictures of Hannah Montana that dominated the other artists lining the walls of the executive hallway; today both Miley and Lilly drew strength from the silent display of Hannah's power here.

As they reached the boardroom, Miley hesitated just a moment before she grasped the doorknob. This would be the first time she had been to a meeting this important without her father present, and that knowledge fell upon her like a pall. It was at this point where he would put his arm around her, give her a smile, and tell her that things were going to be okay.

Miley frowned until she felt gentle arms wrap around her waist, with fingers delicately grazing over her stomach until they laced together in front. She could feel Lilly's body step against her, her warm breath tickling Miley's right ear as she leaned over her shoulders—standing on tiptoes, no doubt—to whisper a single word: "Together."

Miley smiled and closed her eyes, drawing strength from her wife's embrace for a few seconds. She then looked up at the door and reached for the knob. As she did so, Lilly slipped her arms from around Miley and instead reached to open the door before Miley could do so. "After you," Lilly said, taking her time to let Miley make her entrance.

"Thanks," Miley said, smiling back at her wife as she stepped into the boardroom where a half-dozen people waited. Almost all of them were male, with a single woman present. Judging from where she sat at the very end of the group, Miley assumed she was low on the pecking order. As she looked at the six people sitting across the table from where she and Lilly stood, they slowly stood, fake smiles leaping into place right on cue.

"Hannah!" said a man in the center of the corporate pack, his voice overly friendly and his smile wide but superficial.

Miley guessed that he would be the one in charge here, so she said, "Hi everybody," then she moved to sit directly across from the woman, whom she gave a friendly smile to. As Lilly took a seat beside her best friend, Miley watched with amusement how the entire group immediately shifted, gathering up papers and briefcases that had been laid out on the table to move three seats down the large table, putting the one Miley was already thinking of Mr. Suit In Charge directly across the table from her. It was all she and Lilly could do not to laugh as one of the other men dropped a sheaf of papers as he tripped over a chair in his haste to relocate seats.

Once the corporate delegation had retaken their seats, the same man looked at Miley again, and this time his smile definitely seemed a bit forced. "Hannah, we haven't met yet, I'm afraid. I'm Lonnie Walters, Assistant Vice-President of Artist Relations."

Miley raised an eyebrow at his title. "So I'm getting an assistant vice-president sent to talk to this record company's biggest selling artist ever?" she asked, projecting a rather obvious tone of annoyance into her voice. She was about to ask if the insult was deliberate or accidental when the doors to the boardroom opened to admit a face that took Miley all of two seconds to recognize.

The young woman with short-cut blonde hair was wearing a slate-gray suit jacket with a soft pink blouse just barely visible underneath, paired with a matching slate-gray miniskirt that revealed quite a bit of her strong, tanned legs. She cast a steely gaze around the room, then she purposefully walked over to stand beside Miley and Lilly, standing on Miley's left side to offset Lilly, sitting at Miley's right.

Miley didn't even realize her mouth was slightly open as she grinned at Lilly's choice for their new manager. She leaned over toward her best friend as she could hear the snaps of their manager's briefcase clasps open. "Best. Manager. Choice. Ever," she whispered into Lilly's ear Lilly grinned back and nodded once to accept Miley's compliment.

The young blonde woman still hadn't taken a seat yet as she continued to glare across the table at the corporate men and woman, all of whom seemed to be a bit less comfortable at that moment. Her gaze finally settled on the man all the others seemed to be glancing at; she abruptly said, "And who are you?" with a voice that didn't seem like it could get any colder.

The man cleared his throat and extended a hand as he said, "Lonnie Walters, Assistant Vice-President of Artist Relations." Now his smile seemed even more forced than it had been, and it was all Miley and Lilly could do not to snicker.

After a pause, the blonde woman said, "Jen Kittrell, manager for Hannah and Lola Montana." Rather than shake Walters' hand, Lilly's former soccer teammate sat down, sliding her briefcase to the side. "Is it your company's intention to piss off my clients with that contract you offered them?" she asked angrily.

One of the other men in the delegation slid a copy of a contract across the table to Jen, but she made no move to pick it up. Instead she looked at it for a moment, then she looked up and asked, "Is that the same contract?"

"Yes, we highlighted a few points that we felt needed further clarification—"

Jen smacked the contract down the length of the table away from all of them. "As far as I'm concerned, the only thing that contract's good for is wiping my ass with it!" she said hotly. "If that's the best this company can do for its best-selling artist of all time, then it's no surprise they sent an assistant vice-president down here to waste our time."

Now the smile on Mr. Walters' face went away, and his cheeks began to turn slightly red. "The music industry has changed over the last ten years, Ms. Kittrell, and you and your clients should be smart enough to realize that. Pop music is declining. It's on its way out. Rock's most recent revival is fading away too, and where does that leave your client?"

Jen met his gaze as she stood, leaning across the table. Her voice was low but threatening as she growled, "Ninety-one million. That's the number of albums Hannah Montana has sold according to the Recording Industry Association of America. _So far_." She paused to let that number settle before she added, "That's more than the Rolling Stones, more than Madonna, more than U2, more than Bruce Springsteen, more than Michael Jackson, and one _hell _of a lot more than anyone else at this label!" She straightened back up but continued to stand as she said, "Her most recent album is still in the Top 5, and it'll probably go back up to Number One once she starts doing her new concerts. She'll easily make the one hundred million mark in a few years, guaranteed. How many millions of dollars have all those records of hers made for this company? And you offer her a piece of shit contract like _THAT?_"

"Well, that contract reflects a contracting market that—"

"The only thing contracting here is the noose around your fucking _NECK_ is you don't get Hannah Montana to re-sign with this company!" Jen said, slapping the table to emphasize her point and getting more than one person to jump at her action. "Just how long do you think you'll have a job here when Hannah walks out?"

Sweat was beading on Mr. Walters' forehead as he chose his words carefully. Obviously, he hadn't been prepared for such a hostile reception; instead, he had most likely assumed he'd be negotiating with Hannah and Lola, both known to be kind and considerate almost all of the time. Having to face a very angry new manager had completely disrupted his game plan. "Well, I suppose we could rework part of the contract. There would probably be room to come back up some on the artist's share for album revenue, and we might be able to drop the number of albums optioned, but I don't see any way to continue such extravagant expenditures like the corporate jet at a time when the industry is still retooling itself for the future."

Now it was Miley who stood up quickly. "You know, I think I've heard enough." She reached down and took Lilly's hand, drawing strength from the energy that surged between them. "I've delivered the five albums my current contract specified, I've done all the concerts required of me plus more, and I've held back on several songs that I've really wanted to release over the years because this company didn't think it was 'the right time' to release them. Now you want to treat me like somebody that didn't have a hand in building this company into what it is today." Miley sighed before she continued. "I try not to act like some rock diva, but let me tell ya, I'm actin' like one today!" she said angrily. "Consider this my thirty day notice. I'm done here."

As Miley finished, Lilly immediately stood, followed by Jen. The three of them walked to the door, only to stop as they heard Mr. Walters say, "Hannah, we'll get back to you as quickly as we can with a new contract offer!"

Miley stopped but didn't turn around as she said over her shoulder, "Don't hold your breath for my reply."

"We also expect you keep this out of the press, Hannah, because stirring up the media would only it harder for all of us," he called out as the three young women left the boardroom.

"Good luck with that!" Miley yelled in reply, already walking down the hallway.

None of them spoke as they walked to the elevator. As the doors opened, Miley stepped in first, with Lilly and then Jen stepping into the elevator cab. Miley quickly punched the button for the first floor, not the private garage.

As the elevator began its descent, Miley looked at Jen, who didn't seem to have a clue that Hannah Montana was really her old classmate Miley Stewart. "Nice job up there," Miley said, smiling a bright smile at her new manager. She was surprised when Jen smiled back, an honest smile that Miley hadn't seen in a long time, not since all of them were at Seaview High School. "I think my wife did good by hiring you."

"You two get my full attention," Jen said. "That was part of the contract, that I'd be exclusive to the two of you. So you get me all to yourselves. My husband was pretty happy about the contract too, so thank you both. It's a hell of a lot more money than I was expecting to be making at this point in my career."

"Ms. Kittrell has her MBA plus specialized training in contract law," Lilly added helpfully. "And after I talked to her on the phone, I knew that the recommendation we got about her was right on the money." Lilly stuck out her hand and said, "And I'm Lola," smiling as Jen shook her hand. "Nice to meet you face to face."

"Same here," said Jen. She turned to Miley and shook her hand as well. "Mrs. Montana, it's an honor to represent you."

"It's Hannah," Miley said, "and I think this business relationship is going to be good for all of us."

The elevator slowed as it reached the first floor, chiming softly as the doors opened. As the three of them walked to the main entrance of Dyseni Records, a medium-sized mob of reporters was waiting in the small plaza just outside the main doors. "So just who recommended me to you?" asked Jen, curiosity in her voice.

Lilly smiled as she said, "Two friends of ours from Malibu. Lilly and Miley Truscott."

Jen smiled again. "So they got married, huh?" she asked.

"Yeah," said Miley, smiling back. Further conversation was cut off by them going out the doors, which triggered a storm of camera flashes and shouted questions. Miley quickly stepped up to the stand made of multiple microphones lashed together, representing all of the local media networks and quite a few national networks. Lilly took her place beside her wife, her arm around Miley's waist. Years ago she was uncomfortable being at the center of this much attention, but now she accepted it was part of Lola's life to stand beside the woman she loved regardless of the frenzy of attention that went with it. However, she still preferred the peace of just being Lilly and Miley, just like she knew her wife did.

"Thanks for comin' out," Miley said into the microphones, quietening the crowd of reporters instantly. "This'll be a short press conference, I promise." Miley paused a moment, then she said, "First, I just gave Dyseni Records thirty day notice that I'm ending my contract with them."

A flurry of questions were shouted at Hannah, but Miley waved her arms, signaling for everyone to quieten down. "I'm not answering any questions about that today, sorry. I _will_ say that the past CEO of this record company, Mr. Hal Bruton, was a wonderful man who I thought of like a grandfather. He was there with me from the start of my career, and I'm really sad to see him retire. I think that if he were still here, things might not have come to this point."

Miley paused for a minute. She hadn't expected herself to get quite so emotional about this turn of events, but it did hurt. She had spent her entire career as Hannah Montana here, and now that was coming to an end. The future could always be frightening, but this was doubly so, since she had no real idea of where Hannah was going just yet. She looked up and saw that the sun, though low in the sky, was still bright enough to shine. She smiled and then said with a confident voice, "But just because I'm leavin' this company doesn't mean I'm done. I still have lots more songs to sing and concerts to do, and I'm gonna be singin' for my fans for a long, long time!"

As applause picked up around the plaza from onlookers and some of the media crews, Miley took a moment to give Lilly a kiss on her cheek before she turned back to the microphone. "And now for the big news!" she said, drawing a few chuckles from the crowd, obviously wondering what could be bigger news than they had already heard.

Miley grinned as she shared a knowing look with Lilly, then she turned back to the cameras and happily shouted, "I'm nine weeks pregnant with this woman's baby!"

**Author's Afterword:** For those of you hoping for Jen's return, your wish is granted! Expect to see more of her in this story. You can also plan on us checking in with all our favorites, including Oliver, Ashley, Luanne, Ron, Cassie, Sarah, Jackson, Kaela, and several more as we go. I hope all of you enjoy this story, because it's just beginning and we have a long ride ahead of us. Yes, Miley makes a few grammatical mistakes when she talks at times, but that's just because she gets excited. Same for Lilly, so do try to understand if they slip at times. See you soon!

-- Jo --


	2. Chapter 2: What We Make It

**Author's Note: **Wow, I'm thrilled that so many people are enjoying the story so far! Thank you for leaving your reviews, because they really do put a smile on my face when I know I'm giving people a good story. For those of you interested in just how Miley could be pregnant with Lilly's baby, I'm giving you a flashback in the first part of this chapter as to exactly when they conceived their baby; this flashback was first presented as one of Miley's special dreams in Chapter 5 of my story "As I Am, I Take Thee," if it looks familiar to some of you.

I want to thank **Mephisto20100** for pointing out concerns with the timing of Miley's pregnancy. Miley and Lilly do indeed still take their studies seriously, and they've planned out the timing of the pregnancy closely. Given a typical forty week gestation time, that's ten months, not the nine that most people assume. Taking that into account, that puts Miley's due date in the second week of June, well after graduation in early May. The five-year plan is also important at this point, because it lets them carry a lighter class load in these last two semesters to lighten the burden of classwork at this point. As far as the Mrs. Truscotts are concerned, they've waited long enough to make a baby, and they're sure as heck not waiting any longer than absolutely necessary. Now, they _are_ taking a bit of a chance in one way with the timing. If need for an early delivery arose, that would indeed throw off their last semester, so we just have to keep our fingers crossed that things go smoothly for the baby and the mommies.

**RagnarWolf** asks a terrific question about how Lola's wigs work when it comes to her movies. The two movies that Lola has acted in so far have indeed allowed her to wear one of her Lola wigs in her roles, so that's not as much of an issue. This upcoming movie, however, caused a bit of worry in the young Truscotts' household. The girls debated letting Lilly use her natural hair at first, but the risk of her being recognized was just too darn high. What they decided upon was to use a different wig, shorter and with darker hair, that looked quite realistic and seemed very believable for a veteran of combat. To help pull that off, Lilly had to bring along her own "assistant" to help with making sure no one messed with her "working wig" or saw her _real_ hair. It was quite convenient that Luanne had graduated from college a year early, because that freed up Lola's assistant Anna Lee nicely! And to further make people think that Lola's wigs are her "real" hair color, Lilly and Luanne used the same color Lola wig (green) for two months of shooting, then changed it to a different Lola color (purple) for another month, and finally to a third Lola color (fire-engine red) to give the illusion that she really did dye her hair all those colors.

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo P.

Chapter 2: What We Make It

_Life's what you make it_

_So let's make it right_

_Life's what you make it_

_So come on (come on)_

_Let's celebrate it_

_Join in everyone_

_You decide (you decide)_

_'Cause life ('cause life)_

_Is what you make it_

_--_Hannah Montana_, _"Life Is What You Make It"

As Miley and Lilly rode the elevator down to the private garage level, they quietly held hands and braced for the shockwave that they knew would hit them any minute. When the elevator doors opened, they quickly walked over to Miley's electric blue Tesla Roadster where it was charging at the power station installed just for it.

"I guess we ought to leave Gumdrop here for a bit longer, huh?" Miley asked her wife, running her fingers over the slick hood of her car.

Lilly smiled wistfully as she rubbed Miley's back. "Yeah, she'll be okay. And taking her out right now probably wouldn't be too good an idea. Not after our little announcement. Everybody with a camera is gonna be looking for us, and the press knows Hannah drives this car."

Miley sighed loudly, then she looked up at her best friend. "She'll be okay," she said, as much to convince herself as it was for anyone else. "And driving Stella back home is definitely the smartest way to go."

As they walked a few parking spaces over, they looked around carefully before Miley tapped in the code on the driver's door keypad of the black Roadster, unlocking the vehicle. They quickly got into the car and closed the doors, then in less than a minute they shed their wigs, removed their Hannah and Lola outfits and put on simple t-shirts and shorts. As Miley started the car and began retracting the roof, Lilly stuffed their wigs and clothes into the simple backpack in the floorboard. "You think I ought to duck down as you pull out, so they only see one girl in the car?" Lilly asked Miley, getting a nod in reply. "Legs'll be sore for the rest of the night," she grumbled as she crouched down into the floorboard.

"What was that?" Miley said loudly as they approached the exit on the side opposite the main plaza.

However, judging by the grin on her face, Lilly suspected that Miley had heard her all too clearly. "I said, you better give me a nice, long massage when we get home!" Lilly said, and she was quite sure that was loud enough for Miley to hear.

A little over a minute after they left the private parking garage, Miley motioned for Lilly to climb back up into her seat. Lilly made a show of slowly uncoiling herself from her crouch and sliding into her seat. She buckled her seat belt as the wind began to whip through her long blonde hair. "We clear?" she asked.

"Yeah," Miley nodded. "Got one van that started to follow us, but after a few seconds they must have decided that one brunette in a convertible couldn't have anything to do with two media darlings who just exploded a ratings bomb."

"Oh snap Miles!" Lilly said, getting a funny look from Miley. "We forget to turn our cell phones back on!" She gave a worried look to Miley, who returned that worried look with interest.

"I'm driving," Miley finally said, keeping her eyes on the road. "I can't be distracted."

"You got me there," Lilly said, smiling as she pulled her cell phone out of her backpack and powered it on. After a few seconds, she said, "Wow. That was fast."

"What?"

"Seven new messages," Lilly said. "In, what, the thirty minutes that we had our phones turned off?"

"Honey," Miley said, "I betcha those seven messages came in the last _five_ minutes, not the last thirty."

When they had first realized that Miley was pregnant, the two of them had been faced with a Gordian Knot of a dilemma: who would they tell first? That was the kind of problem that had no real good answer. No matter whom they picked, it meant that several other family members and friends would feel slighted. After a week of thinking about the situation, Miley had come up with an idea.

They had gone to a bridal boutique and ordered a pack of customized announcements, with their names and the baby's estimated due date engraved on each announcement. The announcements were sealed in individual envelopes, then the sealed envelopes were placed into slightly larger mailing envelopes, along with a note instructing the recipient to not open the inner envelope until a very specific date and time: exactly fifteen minutes before Hannah and Lola had scheduled their press conference on that very same date. That way all their family and friends would know before the big announcement, but not in time to potentially throw off the timing of the meeting with Dyseni Records or the press conference.

Right before they went into the meeting, Miley and Lilly had turned off their cell phones to put off the flood of calls they knew the announcements would trigger. But now it was time to start talking with everyone, and there would probably still be some ruffled feathers that would need soothing.

"Wow, five new text messages, too," Lilly said. She began flipping through them. "Ha! First one's from your niece Peyton. That girl's fast."

"What is it?"

"Umm, she says, 'About time.' Oh, and the next one's from Melody." There was a pause, then Lilly suddenly laughed, "HA!"

"What?" Miley asked, glancing at Lilly.

"She says that we have her permission to name the baby after her," Lilly said with a grin. "That girl is something else."

Miley and Lilly were still very close with their "nieces" Peyton and Melody Burns, now fourteen and twelve respectively. Melody had a birthday coming up in just a few weeks, and Miley and Lilly had offered to fly the girls out to Malibu to spend a week with them right before Christmas, then they'd all fly back to Misty Hollow to spend Christmas in Tennessee. That continued to be a tradition that both Lilly and Miley loved, for many reasons.

"Uh oh," Lilly said, grimacing as she began listening to the voice mail messages. She paused, then she looked over at Miley. "Mamaw."

Now Miley also grimaced. Her grandmother's reaction was the one that she was most frightened of, because her temper was well-known. "How loud is she yelling?" Miley asked, but she really didn't want to know.

Lilly didn't answer for a minute, then she snapped the phone closed. She turned to look at her best friend again and said, "Wow. She said that she'd forgive us if we called her and told her all the details as soon as we got home."

"Really?" Miley said, her voice shocked. "Heck, I was expectin' a lot worse."

"Well, she also said that if we _didn't_ call her and give her all the details that she'd fly out her on her broken leg and make our lives a living hell until the baby was born, then she'd whip us both within an inch of our lives."

Miley nodded. "Yep, that sounds more like my Mamaw."

Once they had made it back to their house and parked the inky black Roadster in the carport, Lilly grabbed the backpack while Miley plugged the electric car into the charging station. "So are we calling your Mamaw first?" Lilly asked as they unlocked the back door and walked inside. But before Miley could answer, the ringing of the doorbell drew their attention. "Who the heck could that be?" Lilly asked. Miley shrugged her shoulders as Lilly hurried to the door. She unlocked the door and opened it to reveal her rather angry-looking parents. "Mom? Dad?" she asked, confused.

"Is this how we raised you, Lillian?" said her mother hotly. "We find out that we're going to be grandparents from a note rather than from you directly?"

Lilly stepped back, letting her parents come inside. "That isn't how we intended it to come across, Mom, really! I mean, we knew that as soon as we told somebody first, everybody else would be mad that _they_ weren't the first ones we told! By using the invitations, everybody found out at the same time."

"But it was so impersonal!" Meredith continued. "I mean, a mother should find out news like this from—"

"Stop," said Miley quietly but firmly as she stepped in front of her wife, interposing herself between Lilly and Meredith. "Here," she said as she took Meredith's hand and gently pressed it against her stomach. She looked into her mother-in-law's eyes and said, "That's your granddaughter in there, Meredith. Does it really matter how you found out, or is it more important to just know she's there?"

Meredith looked down at Miley's abdomen, at how her daughter-in-law's hand held her own hand firmly in place, then she looked back up into bright blue eyes so much like her daughter's. She felt herself smile, then she said, "You're right, Miley." She looked over Miley's shoulder to her daughter and softly said, "I'm sorry, Lilly. Please forgive me. I was just upset when I realized you were telling us news this important through a note rather than face-to-face."

"But we couldn't tell everyone the big news face-to-face all at once," Lilly said, still a bit stung by her mother's reproach. "And we thought this was a good idea, so nobody would find out after anyone else."

"It was a good idea, Lilly," Phil said, hugging his daughter and then pulling Miley into the hug as well. "And we're both so happy that we can't see straight!"

"Okay," Miley said, extricating herself after several seconds. "Now we need to call my daddy and my Mamaw, or there's gonna be trouble for my woman and me."

Lilly grinned as she picked up the house phone. "Yeah, Mamaw Stewart is wanting a personal announcement too," she said to her parents as she dialed the number to Ruthie Stewart's house. She held the phone to her ear, and after just a second or two she said, "Mamaw? Hey, this is Lilly." She smiled, then she said, "You're going to be a great-grandmother! Please don't be too upset about the announcement, but Miley and I thought that by sending all the announcements out and having everyone open them at the same time that no one would feel like somebody else got told before they did." She listened for a minute, then she slowly turned and walked slowly across the room. "Yes, we can now see that maybe it wasn't the best idea—in fact my parents are over here right now telling us that—but we didn't mean to upset anybody. And we're telling you now." Lilly slowly turned back around, and she was smiling again. "Okay. We love you too. Can you please put Robbie Ray on the phone? I want Miley to tell him." Lilly held the phone out to Miley. "Here hon."

Miley hurried over and grabbed the phone. "Daddy?" she asked. "Hey." She swallowed, her throat suddenly tight. "I'm..." She felt Lilly rub her back, and that seemed to ease the pressure in her chest. "Lilly and me, we're gonna have a baby. You're gonna be a granddaddy!" She just listened for a bit, and she felt the tears start to build as Lilly guided her over to the couch and sat down with her. "Yep, about the second week of this comin' June, according to this last ultrasound. That way we should be through with school and have a few weeks to make sure everything's in order." Lilly leaned in and quickly kissed Miley on the cheek, putting a bigger smile on her wife's face. "Daddy, let me call you back a bit later. We've still got a few other people to call and tell personally. I love you."

"And I love him too," Lilly said, poking Miley's leg with her index finger.

"And Lilly loves you too," Miley added. She nodded at his reply, then she said, "Bye!" and hung up the phone. "He said he loves you and to tell you congratulations."

Lilly wrapped her arms around Miley and pulled her wife closer to her, nearly toppling her over as Lilly leaned back across the couch. "We're gonna have a baby, Miles," she said softly. "We really are."

"Yeah, but we've still got a ways to go, girlfriend. This little girl has to bake for about seven or eight more months!" Miley said, sitting back up. She started to dial on the phone again. "I need to tell Jackson and Kaela, then you can call Ron and Lu."

"Sounds good to me, hon," Lilly replied, giving her parents a smile. She saw that the two of them were sitting in the love seat beside the couch, their arms around each other. "I love you, Mom, Dad," she said clearly.

"We love you too, Lilly," said Meredith. She smiled and added, "All three of you."

Monday afternoon saw Miley and Lilly sitting in a room with several other women at various stages of pregnancy, flipping through magazines and newspapers.

Miley sighed as she said, "Whoever woulda thought that a baby would stir up so much attention?" She tossed down the newspaper whose headline screamed **HANNAH MONTANA PREGNANT!** and picked up a magazine that had thankfully come out the week before the big announcement four days ago. "Thank the Lord for somethin' different," Miley said, flipping open the magazine.

"Miley," Lilly said, her voice carrying a hint of warning. "Be nice. People are just really curious about how Hannah and Lola got pregnant." Lilly looked around the waiting room of the UCLA Advanced Fertility Center, where she and Miley had a three o'clock appointment with their fertility specialist. Ever since Hannah and Lola had begun talking four days ago about how the Advanced Fertility Center had used years of research into transformed stem cells to allow the two superstars to conceive a child together, the facility had borne the brunt of a swell of publicity. The phones hadn't stopped ringing for the twenty minutes the two of them had been there.

Miley smiled at Lilly as she softly asked, "You remember back in August when we made this little girl?"

Lilly grinned and replied, "Like it was yesterday." Miley leaned her head against Lilly, and she did the same as they both closed their eyes and thought back. What was so striking about their memory was how the experience overlapped with the dream they had shared five years ago about their daughter's conception, with them recalling both the sensation of being in the dream as well as the tingling that indicated they were sharing their experience with their earlier dreaming selves. It sometimes made it difficult to know which Miley and Lilly were in control during that shared experience, but it added a rich layer to the memory that neither of them would trade for anything.

"_This table is cold," Miley grumbled. "And my butt's cold, too."_

"_Oh Miley, stop whining," Lilly said playfully. "You know how much we both want... this..." She looked around, trying to determine where she was. She felt Miley squeeze her hand suddenly._

"_Lil?" Miley's voice said, uncertain and shaky._

"_Yeah, Miles?"_

"_What are-- WHOA!!" she yelled as a woman in a white lab coat stood up from between her legs, prompting a shriek from Lilly as well. A peach-colored drape had hidden her until she stood._

"_Oh my gosh, you scared us to death!" Lilly said, her heart racing as fast as Miley's She looked around at the sterile-looking room filled with cabinets, counters and various pieces of equipment, finally taking in the woman standing in front of them. She was a bit taller than either of them, looked to be in her late thirties, and wore a lab coat and goggles. _

_The older woman grinned and said, "Did you forget I was there?" She smiled gently at them and said, "It's okay, lots of couples get nervous at this point."_

_Lilly looked down at the drape covering Miley's waist and legs, finally realizing they were in a doctor's office, with Miley in position for a pelvic exam or procedure. "Miley, are you okay?" she asked. "Does this feel, um, like a _dream_ to you?" she asked, winking an eye for emphasis._

_Miley nodded her head. "Yeah, exactly what I was thinking. C'mere." Lilly leaned down so Miley could whisper in her ear. "Night before our wedding?" she whispered._

_Lilly nodded. "Yeah. We're dreaming."_

_Miley smiled, then her smile instantly disappeared as a very, very cold sensation suddenly entered her vagina. "WHOA! What the heck was that?" she said loudly._

_A voice came from the other side of the drape. "Miley," the doctor said, "I'm inserting the tubing into your uterus now. It's going to feel a little cold."_

"Ya think?!?_" Miley practically yelled as her back started to arch off the table. Lilly instantly leaned over and stroked Miley's forehead._

"_Shhh," Lilly said, trying to calm her wife down. "Miles, I think I know what's going on."_

_Miley swung her left arm over and grabbed Lilly's shirt. "Then would ya be good enough to TELL ME?"_

_Rather than try to pull away, Lilly instead leaned further over until their lips were almost touching. "I think we're getting ready to make a baby," she said with a brilliant smile. She grinned until tears formed in her eyes, making them sparkle a shade of blue that reminded Miley of the blue sky she remembered from her childhood. The blue sky that stood for all the wonder of the world, a world with no limits beyond what a young girl could dream._

"_Are we really?" Miley said, the cold and discomfort pushed aside as she focused on her wife's beautiful face. She released Lilly's shirt and instead ran her left hand through Lilly's hair._

"_Yes, you are," came the doctor's disembodied voice again. "Mrs. Truscott?"_

"_Which one?" Miley and Lilly said simultaneously, followed by both of them laughing._

"_Sorry," said the doctor, mirth in her voice as well. "Lilly, I meant."_

"_Yes," Lilly said, taking a step toward the foot of the bed but not releasing Miley._

_A hand appeared holding a small cylinder with a green button on one end. "This is yours. The delivery tube is snugly in place in your wife's uterus, and the sperm delivery system is primed and ready."_

_Lilly gingerly took the cylinder, being careful to hold her thumb above the button without actually contacting it. She looked at Miley and whispered a bit too loudly, "Whose sperm did we use?"_

_The doctor's head poked above the cover of the drape. "You two really _are_ nervous, aren't you?" she said._

"_Yeah, of course we are!" Lilly said. "This IS our first baby, after all." She turned to Miley. "Isn't it?" Miley just shrugged, not offering Lilly much help._

_The doctor said, "Lilly, you and Miley have been working with us for several years now. This facility is the most advanced fertility center in the world, and we've spent over a year transforming some of yours and Miley's epithelial cells into stem cells. Once that was done, then we steered a quantity of your re-engineered stem cells, Lilly, into a particular line of development that transformed them into sex cells. Spermatozoa, to be exact. And now we've matured them into a sufficient quantity of sperm to get your wife pregnant." She paused and looked up at them again. "I wanted to thank you two, again. Without your generous support over the years, it would've taken much, much longer for fertility medicine to reach this point. And now we're about to show the world that reverse-engineered stem cells from adult epithelial tissue are a scientifically equal and ethically superior option to embryonic stem cells. In a huge way." Her head once again disappeared behind the drape over Miley's legs. "Now, remember, this might not take on the first try. We have enough sperm engineered for several more tries over the next few days if need be."_

_Lilly looked down at Miley. "I have the oddest feeling it's going to take this try," she said with a smile on her face._

_Miley looked back up at Lilly. "Me too," she said softly. Lilly leaned down and kissed Miley warmly. "Go ahead, Lilly Bear," Miley said in her sultry voice. "Knock me up."_

_Lilly closed her eyes and kissed Miley deeply, not holding any of her love or passion back. As she felt Miley's hands cup the back of her head and pull their mouths together even more tightly, she lost herself in the pleasure of their kiss. And she hit the green button._

Miley sighed happily as she once again silently thanked God for the opportunity to carry Lilly's baby, her _real_ baby, not the product of someone else's body or genes. This child was a part of both of them, and that was a blessing that still seemed almost like a dream. She took Lilly's hand and held it warmly, her thumb idly caressing the back of Lilly's hand as she flipped through the gossip magazine.

"Miley and Lilly?" called out a nurse wearing pink and lavender scrubs as she opened a door at the front of the waiting area.

Miley and Lilly stood, with Miley grabbing her purse as they did so. "Hey Jessie," they each said as they passed by the young nurse, with Miley stopping at the scale just inside the door.

"This dang thing again, huh?" Miley grumbled as she kicked off her shoes and handed Lilly her purse. "We don't even keep scales in our house."

Lilly smiled at Miley's griping. "Miles, you can't even tell you're pregnant! I mean, your belly hasn't even changed yet. And your weight's been great every time they've weighted you here."

Miley cast a glance at Lilly that was meant to be intimidating, but its impact was shattered when Lilly countered by making a supremely goofy face involving sticking her fingers in her mouth and wiggling her tongue at her best friend. Miley's glower dissolved into a sputtering laugh, then she hopped off the scale and grabbed her girlfriend's hands. "Ooooh, you are so gonna get it!" she said to Lilly, who was twisting in an attempt to break free.

"Alright, you two," Jessie said, "Don't tear the office down." She smiled as she led them back to an exam room, ushering them in once they had arrived.

Lilly plopped down into a chair as Miley hopped up on the exam table, dangling her legs off the side. "So," Lilly asked Jessie as she sat on the stool and rolled over to take Miley's pulse, "you ever get to see Hannah and Lola Montana when they come here?"

Jessie shook her head, still counting the heartbeats. After a few seconds, she wrote down a number on Miley's chart, then she looked at Lilly and said, "No, I've never gotten to see them. Most of us think they come in at night after everybody's gone, with just a handful of people here to take care of them. Nobody'll admit to it, though."

"Looks like that interview with them really stirred up your business here, huh?" Miley asked pleasantly as she dangled her legs off the side of the exam table.

The nurse smiled. "Yeah, it's been pretty crazy the last few days." She moved to the door and said, "Dr. Jensen will be in here in just a minute," as she left the room.

Just a minute later, Miley's Hannah phone buzzed in her pocket. She pulled it out and hit the Receive button. "Hello?" She listened, then she said, "Hey Jen! How are things goin'?"

Lilly got up and moved to sit on the exam table beside Miley, trying to listen in on the conversation.

"You got him to set up the concert for us? Awesome!" Miley said excitedly. She turned to Lilly and said, "The guy that Daddy recommended to book and promote the concerts said he'd do it, and the choreographer from my last concert is on board, too!" Miley put the phone back to her face and said, "Jen, you're doing terrific! Any trouble with getting the equipment together?" Miley nodded, still smiling. "Yeah, already owning most of the stuff was a huge plus. We just needed some of the new lighting I was wanting. And you should already have the numbers for the road crew and band so—" Miley grinned. "You rock. So when can we sit down and let me tell 'em what I'm wantin' to do this time? This weekend maybe?"

"Remember," Lilly whispered, "we have the Halloween party not this coming Thursday but the next, on Halloween."

Miley nodded to her wife. "Okay, Jen? Everyone is gonna freak when they hear this, but I'd really like to do the first concert two weeks after Halloween." There was a pause, then Miley said, "Yeah, I know that's really close, but I already have all the songs for the new album done. I've already designed the front and back covers for the album and the CD itself, and now I just need to pick a title for the album. If I like how the printer turns them out, we can send it to press next week. Two or three weeks for pressing CDs, and we can have them in stores a week after that." Miley rolled her eyes, making Lilly giggle. "No, I'm not insane," she said patiently. "Just impatient. I want to get these concerts rolling before I get too big and pregnant to do them. We're not doing that many, just about twelve or fifteen to start with. We might do some more early in 2014, depending on how the pregnancy is going. Oh, and we need to release a single to get things rolling. I think 'Stand Up, Stand Out' would be perfect to kinda bridge between Hannah's regular stuff and the more grown-up sound. Then we could go with 'Rock Your Body' as the second single to really heat things up."

Lilly whispered into Miley's ear, "Miles, don't forget about our school, too. I know you're going to get some credit for your senior marketing project with all this, but I still have my classes and you'll probably have at least one non-marketing class, too."

Miley gave Lilly a thoughtful look, then she picked up Lilly's hand and raised to her lips, giving it a gentle kiss. "Jen? Look, I know you can get this done, and I kinda need to get back to things here. I'll call you tomorrow, 'kay? And we really appreciate everything you're doing and all your hard work. Bye!" She clicked off the phone and dropped it on the coffee table. "Ugh. It was a lot easier letting someone else do all this stuff."

A knock on the door was followed by the entrance of Dr. Jan Jensen, the obstetrician Miley and Lilly had chosen to work with. While she was in her late thirties, she looked significantly younger due to her bright eyes and ready smile. Miley and Lilly had chosen her four years ago to be their fertility specialist as soon as they had met her, and their choice had proven to be an excellent one. They hadn't immediately recognized her as the doctor in their shared dream from several years ago, mainly because her hair was much longer and a different color at their first meeting. Only later, after she had cut and redone her hair several times, did they realize she was indeed the very same doctor present when Lilly impregnated Miley.

"Hello ladies!" said Jan as she came into the room, followed by her nurse Jessie who was pushing a small equipment cart. "How are things going?"

"They're going okay," Miley said. "I've really not been that sick lately, just those two weeks and then almost none since then."

"You're lucky," Jan said as she pulled out the foot of the table, prompting Miley to lie back. She gently lifted Miley's shirt as Lilly moved to the other side of the exam table, watching with a smile as the doctor palpated her wife's abdomen, still not showing any obvious signs of the pregnancy at this early stage.

"Do we get to hear the baby's heartbeat today?" Lilly asked, obviously excited about the possibility of further proof of her daughter's existence.

"I think we can arrange that," Jan said as she picked up the bottle of ultrasound gel resting on the cart. "This is going to be cold, Miley," she said right before she squirted some of the blue gel onto Miley's stomach.

"Whoa!" Miley said, jerking as the liquid hit her skin. "I'd say, cold!"

"Suck it up, Miles," Lilly said playfully, getting a light swat on her hip from her best friend.

"Okay, let's listen to baby's heartbeat," said Jan as she touched the ultrasound wand to Miley's stomach and deftly shifted its position back and forth. It only took a few seconds before the loud, rushing sound of a fetal heart could be crisply heard in the room.

Miley closed her eyes and leaned her head back, resting it on the table as she silently gave thanks that things were going well. By contrast, Lilly's face lit up as she listened. She grabbed Miley's left hand and squeezed it tightly as she said with a reverent voice, "That's our baby, Miley. _Our_ baby." She looked down at Miley and ran her right hand across Miley's forehead, gently moving a few stray bangs out of her friend's face. As Miley opened her eyes and met Lilly's loving gaze, Lilly said in a quiet voice, "We made her, sweetheart. Our love gave this little girl life."

Miley pulled Lilly closer, unable to suppress the shiver that suddenly raced through her body. "Thank you for giving me this amazing, absolutely wonderful gift, Lilly Bear," she said in a voice just louder than a whisper as she hugged her partner in everything.

"My pleasure, Miles," Lilly whispered back. "Thank you for letting me."

Two hours later saw Miley and Lilly return to their house, tired after the doctor's appointment and lunch but thrilled at the chance to hear the life growing inside Miley.

"When can we start to feel her kick?" Lilly asked.

Miley gave her wife a look. "Lil, she's still growin' her little legs. Be patient. You've got tons of time to teach her how to surf and skateboard."

Lilly plopped down onto the couch, sighing loudly. "Patience is _not_ my strong point," she replied.

"That's for sure," mumbled Miley as she sat down next to Lilly, resting her head in Lilly's lap while she also grabbed the remote control and turned on the television. Lilly began to gently run her fingers through Miley's thick chestnut brown hair, carefully working strands of Miley's amazing hair into long braids.

"Mmmm, that feels so good..." Miley said, closing her eyes and relaxing into Lilly's touch.

"Good," said Lilly with a smile, "You need to relax for a bit. We've had a full week so far, and it's important for you and the baby to get your rest."

"Can't rest too much, hon," Miley said, reaching back to run her fingers through Lilly's hair. "I've got a ton of work to do if these concerts are going to happen sometime next month. I have to get the band practicing regularly to learn the new songs, I have to talk to the choreographer and set designer so they can get started with what I want to the concert's look to be, I have to set up some more interviews and some advertising—"

"No," Lilly said firmly, covering Miley's mouth with her left hand. "Your tour band is who you recorded the new songs with, Miles. All of them know what they're doing. Let them have a few days to sharpen back up, sure, but you don't need to go in just yet for that. The advertising and interviews Jen can handle. That's her job. That's what we hired her for. I'll keep an eye on her to make sure she doesn't overdo it. Plus you need to come up with a name for the album and the record company, unless you just want to leave it under Hannah's name." Lilly paused, then she sighed and removed her hand from Miley's mouth. "The choreographer and set designer, yeah, you're gonna have to talk to them. You're the only one who really knows what you want when it comes to the set design and layout." Lilly kissed the top of Miley's head. "So what _are_ you thinking about for your concert?"

Miley grinned as she turned around to face her best friend. "I want to put on a _show_," she said earnestly. "I mean, something even more spectacular than usual. I want people to get there early just to see cool stuff, like maybe videos of new bands, or a booth with little carnival games, or a mini-store that sells all kinds of Hannah and Lola stuff..."

"That sounds cool, Miley!" Lilly said, and she meant it. Apparently her wife had indeed been thinking about exactly what she wanted in terms of a concert experience. "Any ideas on your opening act?"

Miley shook her head, and her grin never flickered. "No opener," she said seriously. "Just me."

Lilly smiled in return, "Well, you know I'll go for that. But won't that put you on the stage for a really long time?"

Miley shook her head. "Nope, not all at once. And that also fits into what I came up with for Hannah's younger fans." She shifted her body position so that she was in more of a sitting position, easing the pressure on her back but sliding into her best friend's lap. "I'm breaking the concert into two separate shows. The first show will start earlier, run about forty-five or fifty minutes, and cover most of Hannah's earlier songs. We have a short intermission, say fifteen or twenty minutes, give people time to go to the bathroom, check out the commons area where the booths and shops are, and we let the parents take the younger kids home. On the way out, we have a place set up for them to turn in part of their ticket, then we get their name and address so we can send them a refund of half of the ticket price. We redo the stage for the second set, which'll be the more grown-up songs and a few of Hannah's old favorites that lend themselves to a sexier treatment." Miley grinned and winked at Lilly, getting a faint blush in response.

"Like, uh, 'See You Again,' maybe?" Lilly asked with a sly smile. "Because you would so totally ooze hotness with a tight black leather miniskirt and some pumps or even boots for that song!"

Miley jerked her head back as she looked into Lilly's eyes. "Are you _wantin'_ people to be lookin' up my skirt, woman?"

Lilly stared back with a defiant look on her face as she replied, "Well, I'd expect you'd be wearing some sensible underwear, like some shorts or something. Because you know _somebody'll_ sneak a camera in."

"Yeah, that's true," Miley said. "And I can always take 'em off later for you," she added with a sneaky grin.

"Exactly," Lilly said, hugging her wife tightly.

As the two young women embraced, Miley shifted so she could lie in Lilly's arms and still look at the picture frame on their coffee table. It had been taken several years ago, but they had printed a new version of it just last month after their little nephew Sam, Kaela and Jackson's son who would turn four in February, had spilled his juice over the table during their visit last month. Some of the juice had seeped into the frame and ruined the previous print, but it had only taken a few minutes to print another glossy 8"x10" from the digital file stored on their computer.

In the picture a very young Miley and Lilly, both just fifteen, were asleep. Miley was lying on the couch with Lilly sitting in a chair next to the couch, her head resting on Miley's stomach. The two girls were holding hands with their left hands, with their right hands in each other's hair, holding on softly but securely. But what truly made the picture was the shared expression of happiness, of pure bliss on each girl's face, only clearly visible when they were both asleep and unable to conceal the growing attraction they had secretly felt for each other. Robbie Ray had held onto that picture for years before he finally showed it to them right before they started college; it had instantly become a favorite of both Miley and Lilly and had earned a permanent place in their house.

"You mind if I take a little nap on you, hon?" Miley asked, her eyes already closed.

Lilly grinned. "Hang on," she said as she slid out from under Miley, climbing over the back of the couch.

"Lilly!" Miley whined loudly, only to quickly be silenced by a soft fleece blanket being dropped on her head. "Mmffmth!" she yelled under the blanket, only to have it snatched off of her.

"You say something?" asked Lilly, grinning down at Miley and her now slightly fuzzed hair. "Thought I'd get us a little cover so I could lay down beside you."

Miley rolled over to look at Lilly, still standing behind the couch, then she rolled back over. "Fine," she said dramatically. "I guess you can lay down with me, then, since you were nice enough to get a blankie for us. But you're gonna burn up, like you always do when you cover up with your clothes on." As Miley felt Lilly's weight once again settle on the couch behind her, she scooted back just slightly. And then her eyes blinked open as she realized that Lilly had absolutely no clothes on whatsoever as she cuddled up behind Miley.

"Who said I was sleeping with my clothes on?" Lilly said softly into Miley's ear before she wrapped her arms around her lover.

Miley grinned as she undid the button and then the zipper on her own jeans. "Works for me," she said as she wiggled out of her pants. Her shirt followed the pants onto the floor, followed by her bra and panties, making a fairly neat pile of clothes in front of the couch.

"I like naps like this," Lilly said as Miley wiggled back against her, their bodies rapidly warming as heat raced from one to another and back again.

"Mmmm, me too," replied Miley as she moved her hair to let Lilly breathe a bit more easily as she settled into position right behind Miley's head. "Me too. Naked naps rule."

**Author's Afterword:** If you've read all the stories so far, you should recognize the scene in the picture and remember when Robbie Ray took it. If not, go way, way back to the very first story, "You and Me, Together," and start from the beginning. You'll find yourself there very quickly. Hope everyone enjoys this chapter, and I'll have the next one as soon as I can. Thanks, and I'll see you soon!

-- Jo --


	3. Chapter 3: Reconnecting

**Author's Note: **Is it good or bad that I find it hard to watch new episodes of _Hannah Montana_ now? I keep expecting to see Miley and Lilly share a quick kiss or hold hands, and then when they don't I'm rudely brought back to the fact that I'm watching Disney's vision of _HM_, not the vision many of us share. That makes me a bit sad, because the show could really be so much more than just a new take on one of the same eight or nine jokes Disney seems stuck on now, just like _South of Nowhere_ was so much more than a gay version of _The OC_. But every now and then, despite Disney's efforts to squelch things between Miley and Lilly, we get a brief glimpse of the love that exists between the two characters, like what we used to see in the first two seasons before Disney got very careful with things. Dang it, Disney, I want my Miley-Lilly time back, and I'm prepared to pout until I get it!

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo P.

Chapter 3: Reconnecting

_Life is for dreamers_

_And I'm a believer_

_That nothing can stand in our way today_

_Let's find a place to play_

_--_Hannah Montana_, _"Life Is What You Make It"

Lilly sneaked a long look at the woman she loved, taking in how Hannah Montana could dominate a stage wearing a t-shirt and sweat pants just as easily as she could wearing her full ensemble during a concert. With a sigh she turned her attention back to Lola and Hannah's new manager, Jen Kittrell. "So the offers for Hannah are pretty good?" she asked, still not exactly sure as to what some of the music industry language meant.

"Good? _GOOD?_ They're fuc... They're fabulous!" Jen caught herself. She was trying not to swear as much when it was just her and her clients, because Lilly had already fussed at her once following a particularly salty stream of profanity in the presence of Miley and the baby's developing ears. However, Jen's behavior toward the Dyseni group last week had been warranted, and Lilly and Miley both were quite pleased at how their new manager had done in her first real test.

For the last few days they had avoided the practice studio at Dyseni Records, but today Miley had made her way back into the building. She was still their premiere artist for three more weeks, after all, and setting up her own record company was proving to be a severe challenge. Lilly was immensely grateful that she was able to deal with some of the burdens and thus spare Miley from some of the headaches.

"What are they offering in terms of compensation?" Lilly asked Jen, trying to make sense of the numbers and percentages and options and about a hundred other details that right this moment she wished she didn't have to know anything about. She stopped and rubbed her eyes. "And she's going to want to keep control, rights, licensing, all that for all of her songs. I know that'll cost us some in terms of what they're willing to pay, but it's not like we're hurting for money." Lilly smiled a sad smile. At this point she and Miley were diverting well over half of what they were earning into the Hannah and Lola Montana Foundation, so there was some justification for wanting appropriate compensation for Miley's hard work and talent, at least as far as Lilly was concerned. The two of them also had some other plans for using their wealth that were already underway, but those remained secrets shared only by Lilly and Miley at this time.

And then there was the matter of Hannah's image. Lilly had been stung just as much as Miley by Dyseni's surly attitude toward Hannah, and she was even more determined than Miley to prove that Hannah was still a true superstar, in every sense of the word.

"Oh, that reminds me," Lilly said. "There's some organization in Malibu called Friends of the Ocean that we heard is doing lots of work with area beaches and conservation. We want to make sure and donate a pretty good amount of money to them. Normally we'd go through the Foundation, but Darcy is on vacation for another week and I'd like them to get the money as soon as possible."

Jen nodded, scribbling away in her notebook. "How much were you thinking? Five thousand? Ten?"

Lilly glanced back over at Miley, who was squirting water from her water bottle at her drummer, sending everyone else in the band scurrying for cover. Lilly smiled as she watched her best friend laugh, enjoying herself completely. _I could do nothing the rest of my life except look at her and think about how beautiful she is, inside and outside. And I'd be happy._ Her eyes drifted down to Miley's stomach, and Lilly felt her heart skip a beat as she once again thought about just how much Miley loved her. How much Miley was willing to give to her, and how much Lilly was willing to give to Miley. _Everything. That's what I'd give for her and what she'd give for me, without hesitation or regret._

"Lola?" Jen asked. "Have you thought about how much you want to donate?"

Lilly forced her mind to focus on something other than the other half of her heart standing about twenty yards away. "Five hundred," she said offhandedly.

Jen nodded. "Okay, five hundred dollars. I can take—"

"No," Lilly said, shaking her head as she now turned to look at Jen. "Five hundred _thousand_ dollars. That's what we want to donate."

"Seriously?" Jen asked, staring at one of her bosses in amazement. Even with the generous salary they were paying her, that was more money than she'd bring home in several years' time.

"Yeah," said Lilly, nodding her head. "They're really doing great work, and we want to support them as much as we can."

Jen held Lilly's gaze for long seconds. "There's no way I'll be able to keep that kind of donation quiet. Or even anonymous, really."

Lilly shrugged her shoulders and smiled. "Just don't let them throw us a parade or anything. Please." The beeping of her cell phone seized her attention, and as she retrieved her phone from her purse she remembered why she had set that alarm. She waited for a break in the singing before calling out, "Hey Hannah!"

"Yeah?" said Miley, turning to look at her wife. Seeing Lilly lift her left arm and tap her watch reminded Miley of their plans. "Sorry guys, but I have to take off. Lola and I are meeting some friends this afternoon. Ya'll sound great, though." She waved goodbye and grabbed her jacket and water bottle as she hurried over to Lilly and Jen. "Hey lover," Miley said as she bent down to give Lilly a hungry kiss. "I take it it's time to hit the road?"

"You take it right," Lilly said, smiling as the tingle of the kiss still danced across her lips. The years together hadn't diminished the thrill she still got every time their lips touched, and Lilly honestly didn't think they ever would. "Just telling Jen about having her make that donation we had talked about last night."

Miley nodded. "Good." She looked at Jen and added, "Thanks for taking care of that, Jen. Normally we'd let Darcy handle that stuff through the Foundation, but we want you to know how to handle that too. You can talk to Laura at the Foundation; she'll walk you through it sometime today." As Miley grabbed her purse, she saw that Jen was biting her tongue to say something. "What is it?" Miley asked politely.

"We really need to talk about some of these contract offers you're getting in," Jen said. "I mean, quite a few of them are potentially better than what you have with Dyseni now. You really need to think about jumping on one of them while there's still time to have a major label absorb some of the cost of pressing and promoting this album."

Miley looked at her new manager carefully. After long seconds she said, "Tell you what. We have someplace we need to be in a few minutes. You get this stuff taken care of today, and you can sit down with us tomorrow morning and go over the offers."

"Hannah? That's not gonna work, sweetheart."

Miley turned to look at Lilly, and as she did so, she remembered that both of them had tests tomorrow. After lunch today they'd be studying the rest of the night to finish preparing for their test in American History: Civil War to Present. It was the only class they had together this semester, and they were both determined to do well on it. "Shoot. I forgotten about that, hon," she said. She turned back to Jen and said, "Okay, it'll have to be the next day, then."

Jen nodded. "That works. At the rate you're getting offers, you might even get four or five more offers by then." She put her papers into her gunmetal briefcase and closed it, smiling at the feel of the latches locking securely. "So, should I come by your house or something the day after tomorrow? I mean, I'm your manager and I don't even know where you live."

Miley and Lilly looked at each other. "Uh, how about if we call you first?" Miley asked. "It might be easier to just meet you at your house."

"We're really careful with telling people where we live," Lilly added quickly. "I mean, with the way the media is so crazy about celebrities and all that."

Jen gave them a dubious look. "Do you two not trust me?" she asked, her voice wary. "I mean, you're trusting me enough to handle your careers, for God's sake. Don't you think you can trust me with where you live?"

"We, uh," Lilly said, looking down at her feet, "we really... hadn't thought about that. About keeping where we live a secret from you." She looked back up, and what she saw on Jen Kittrell's face was something she never expected. Hurt. Lilly elbowed Miley, nearly making her drop her water bottle.

"Hey!" Miley said, fumbling with her plastic bottle and finally regaining a grip on it. "What?" As she looked into Lilly's blue eyes, though, Miley could see that her best friend was very serious about what she was about to say. Miley sighed, then she said, "Okay." She knew what Lilly was about to ask, and she was right. Both Lilly and Jen were right.

Lilly smiled. "Okay," she echoed, nodding once in time with Miley. She turned back to Jen and said, "Our house will be fine, Jen. Day after tomorrow."

Miley looked Jen squarely in the eye and bolstered herself with all of Hannah's charisma as she said, "We're trusting you big on this one, Jen. All the money in the world can't buy us back our privacy if something like where we live slips out."

"So we'll pick you up and drive you to our house this time," Lilly continued. "Meet us at the Dyseni office at nine a.m. the day after tomorrow." When Miley poked her in the ribs, Lilly gave her girlfriend a look. "What?"

"That's our day to sleep in," Miley said in a lower voice. "I want my cuddle time with you."

Lilly rolled her eyes, but a grin spread across her face. "I want my cuddle time with you too, honey," she said as she put her arm around Miley. "How about meeting Jen at ten?"

"That works," said Miley agreeably. "We'll call you tomorrow evening if anything changes, okay?"

"Okay," replied Jen, keeping a steady face but inwardly both surprised and pleased that her clients had decided to trust her with where they lived. _Well, unless they decide to blindfold me or something. They might be weird that way._

As Miley and Lilly drove through Malibu, they were both enjoying the feel of the California sunshine on their bodies. They had changed out of their Hannah and Lola outfits when they reached Lilly's black Roadster, and now they were on their way to meet some friends for lunch.

"You talk to Cassie today?" Miley asked Lilly, reaching down to hold her wife's hand.

"Yeah," said Lilly, not taking her eyes off the road as she drove. "She said that she didn't care what Hannah and Lola were doing today, because she expected Miley and Lilly to be at her house for lunch."

Miley grinned. "Sounds like her," she said simply.

"Yeah," Lilly said in reply, with a matching smile on her face. "Somebody has to keep Seaview High School from burning down. Might as well be her, huh?"

Miley didn't need to reply for Lilly to know she agreed with her statement. Instead Miley brought Lilly's hand to her mouth and began planting soft kisses on the back of her strong hand, then turning her hand to reach her more sensitive palm.

"Careful, Miles," Lilly said as she felt her heart rate start to pick up speed. "Don't get me too worked up."

Miley grinned as she slipped Lilly's thumb between her lips and began sucking on it, nearly giggling as she heard the throaty groan that came from her best friend's throat. "Bit late for that, I think," Miley said teasingly right after she pulled Lilly's thumb out of her mouth with a soft, wet pop. "And you weren't singin' that tune last night."

As Lilly turned into the small subdivision where Cassie Hughes lived, she smiled as she thought back to making love to her wife with the curtains thrown wide and the patio door open, letting the moonlight and ocean air fill their new bedroom as they consecrated it again with their rituals of love both tender and intense. "Miles, I'll always sing your tune, and you know that. Well, as far as I can sing, at least."

"Stop," Miley said, planting one last kiss on her lover's hand. "You can sing pretty darn good now."

"You're biased."

"Maybe."

"But I still think it's sweet of you to say so."

As Lilly pulled into Cassie's driveway, Miley just looked at her wife and smiled. "You do a good job," she finally said as Lilly turned off the car.

"I had a good teacher," Lilly said as she reached across the car and patted Miley's cheek. She smiled at Miley, then the two of them climbed out of the car. "Wonder what Cassie's making for lunch?"

"No idea," said Miley a bit warily. "But I don't see Sarah's car, so we might be safe."

Lilly nodded silently. "Vegan food is definitely not for me."

"Me either. Good thing Cassie's on our side, huh?"

Now Lilly grinned as she knocked on the back door. "Totally," she said, then she cried out, "Eeeeep!" as the glass door slid open to let Cassie Hughes hug Lilly tightly.

"About time you girls got here!" Cassie said, pointing a finger at Lilly before she abruptly turned and looked at Miley. As she did so, a large grin spread across her face.

Miley grinned too. She stepped forward, lifting her shirt to reveal her beautiful abdomen. There was still no sign of her pregnancy that anyone except Lilly could detect, and even Miley's best friend and lover could barely notice any change. "You want to say hi to her?" Miley asked as she stopped in front of Cassie.

Cassie smiled and gently pressed her hand against Miley's belly. "Hey baby girl," she said as she knelt down, bringing her mouth close to Miley's stomach. "This is your aunt Cassie. You be good to your mommies, you hear me?"

The rumble of Lilly's stomach made all three of them laugh, as well as prompting Cassie to stand up and hurry back inside the house. "I hear _your_ baby loud and clear, Lilly!" she said, breaking into a run to stay ahead of Lilly, who was suddenly right behind Cassie. "I fixed some spicy jambalaya and baked fresh bread for lunch," Cassie said as they went into the small house. "Sarah's working at a cleanup this morning. She didn't think she'd be back until later today, so I fixed her a lunch this morning."

"Did you take today off just to cook, Cass?" asked Miley.

Cassie nodded. "Well, that and to celebrate. Exactly one year today."

"Whoo!" shouted Miley, giving Cassie a high five. "It doesn't seem like you two have been seeing each other that long, does it?"

Cassie shook her head as she moved the large pot off the hot burner onto a cool one, being careful not to burn herself as she did so. "No, it's gone really fast," she said, a hint of a smile creeping across her face.

Lilly went to the cabinet and took out plates for each of them, handing them to Miley who then began to set the table. "How's adjusting to living together?" Lilly asked curiously. "I mean, that's a pretty big step for every couple."

Cassie looked at the blonde and pointed a finger at her. "_Almost_ every couple," she corrected Lilly. "You two didn't seem to have any trouble adjusting from what your parents all said."

"Please tell me you haven't been talking to my parents about adjusting to living with someone," Lilly said pleadingly. "Because if you have, then..."

"They had to tell me all sorts of fun stories about you and Miley spending weekends together once you became a couple?" Cassie said, a twinkle of mischief in her eye. "They might have mentioned a few things..."

"I am _so_ going to let them have it," Lilly muttered under her breath as the phone mounted on the wall rang.

Cassie stepped over and picked up the handset. "Hello?" she said into the phone, smiling immediately after. "Hey lovergirl," she purred into the phone. "You having a good day down at the beach?" As Cassie listened to what Sarah was telling her, she looked over at Miley and Lilly, her eyes turning a bit misty. "That's amazing, Sarah," she said, her voice cracking. "You'll be able to really get some things going now, huh?" With a smile, Cassie said, "Miley and Lilly are over here for lunch. You coming home or staying down at the cleanup site for a bit longer?" After a pause, Cassie said, "That's what I thought. I'll see you when you get home, hot stuff. And I'll share a nice hot shower with you to conserve water. Love you." Cassie hit the button to end the call, then she turned to look at Miley and Lilly. "It seems that Sarah's beach cleanup project got a huge donation from two celebrities today," she said as she sat down at the table, joining Miley and Lilly who had already done so.

"Huh," said Miley noncommittally, taking a bite of her food and avoiding eye contact with Cassie.

Lilly took a bite of bread, examining it closely as well. When she swallowed it, she said, "Well, good. Sarah said she needed a bit more money for some of the equipment they needed, so it's nice that she can buy it now."

Cassie looked at her two friends. They had never spoken further about Miley and Lilly being Hannah and Lola Montana since the senior trip to Washington, and so now all she said was, "Thank you. Thank you so much. Sarah's been worried about having enough money to get that section of beach cleaned up and reopened, and now she can."

Miley looked at Cassie. "You're welcome," she said softly, and Lilly's friendly look echoed what Miley said. "So you'll be at the party tomorrow night?" Miley asked.

"Ashley's Halloween party? Oh yeah," Cassie said with a smile. "It was after last year's party that Sarah and I had sex for the first time. So we're looking forward to it again this year."

"I blame that pumpkin," said Lilly with a grin. "How's Mr. Corelli?"

"Pete's doing great," Cassie replied. "I'm glad he and I realized that we worked much better as friends than as a couple as fast as we did. He's having a tough time adjusting to his mom passing away last week, but he's hanging in there."

"Good," Lilly said. "Tell him we're thinking of him, okay?" Lilly felt Miley cross her leg over hers under the table, and she responded by scooting closer to Miley on the bench they were sitting on.

"I think Ashley was planning on asking him to the Halloween party, actually," Miley said. "That might be nice for him, to get out and have some fun."

Cassie thought for a minute, then she said, "I think that might be exactly what he needs. Now go ahead and work on your lunch, because I want to show you what Sarah's wanting to do with the house before you two have to get started studying."

"Just moved in a week ago and she's already rearranging your house, huh?" Miley asked with a smirk. "Must be love."

"Or insanity," Cassie said, getting giggles from her friends. "But even if I am crazy, it feels really, really good to be with her. I mean, she's so caring and sweet that it blows my mind."

Miley turned to Lilly and said, "That means the sex is pretty darn good, too," causing Lilly to sputter. Thankfully for Miley, her wife was able to turn her head in time.

"What is it with you girls and sex?" Cassie said, affecting a tone of irritation. "Hell, you two screw like bunnies! How many times have you two had sex today? Two? Three?"

Miley and Lilly looked at each other. Lilly leaned forward and lightly kissed Miley on the tip of her nose, making Miley smile and hug Lilly securely. After a few seconds of hugging, Miley and Lilly released each other.

"Are we talking separate times only?" Lilly asked as she turned to look at Cassie again. "Or does taking a break to go pee then washing off and going back at it count as two times?"

Cassie rolled her eyes. "Why do I even bother?" she asked herself as Miley and Lilly shook with laughter.

Studying that night went quite well despite the arrival of several trick-or-treaters out for Halloween, and Friday morning saw the dreaded test vanquished for both Miley and Lilly. In celebration they went out for lunch with Ashley and her mother Kimiyo; Oliver was out of town and wouldn't be back until Saturday morning, just in time for the party Saturday night. The party had originally been planned for Thursday on Halloween itself, but it turned out to be much easier to instead move it to Saturday when more people could attend. After lunch Miley and Lilly went back home and cleaned house for several hours, not stopping until it was nearly dark.

"Ugh, I'm pooped," Lilly said, dropping to sit on the kitchen floor.

"Hey, I just Swiffered there," Miley said, pointing the Swiffer at her girlfriend. "Don't get it all sweaty with your butt."

Lilly gave Miley a look of amusement. "Normally you don't complain when you get me all sweaty, lover," she cooed pleasantly. Lilly saw Miley's expression change considerably at whatever she was thinking about. "What is it, hon? Something's got you excited. I know that horny look you get."

Miley grinned at Lilly. "Let's get in the shower, then we can try on our costumes."

From the way Miley said "try on," Lilly knew that actually meant, "put on our costumes and fool around." She grinned herself. She had been waiting several days to see how Miley would look in her Batwoman costume, and tonight would be an excellent time to find out. Especially if it led to some pretty hot lovemaking, like it almost certainly would. "Deal," she said, holding out her hand for Miley to help her up, which her best friend did immediately. "I get in the shower first," Lilly said, running for the stairs as soon as she was on her feet.

"Hey!"

"You said I had the sweaty butt, remember?" Lilly called out over her shoulder as she raced up the stairs, Miley not too far behind her.

Some time later, Lilly was stretched out across their new king-sized bed, her arms tightly wrapped around Miley as she steadily breathed in and out. Both of them were naked and quite relaxed now that they had made love both in and out of their new costumes. Lilly looked down at the top of Miley's head where it rested on Lilly's bare chest, Miley's lips just brushing against the top of Lilly's left breast. "You enjoy that too, Miles?" Lilly whispered as she ran her hand through Miley's thick hair, now wet with sweat.

"Mm hm," Miley mumbled as she tightened her own grip on her lover, her right arm underneath Lilly's torso and her left hand cupping Lilly's right breast. "You look hotter'n a heat wave in July in that Supergirl costume, girlfriend."

Lilly grinned at the compliment, then she said, "You fill out that Batwoman costume in all the right places yourself, Miles." She lifted one hand to push her hair out of her eyes, fanning herself briefly. "Geez, Miley, you turn me on so much, even now! I mean, do you really know how amazingly hot you are?"

Miley raised her head enough to look into Lilly's glistening blue eyes. "Yeah," she said with a straight face. "I mean, you tell me all the time." The last few weeks had seen Miley's sex drive ratchet up a notch or two; their doctor had explained to both of them that it was common for pregnancy to stimulate a woman's sex drive beyond its baseline, initially causing a bit of concern for Lilly, who feared she might not be able to keep up with her wife's wants and needs. However, as Miley's own desire for intimate contact rose, Lilly's seemed to match it, to the delight of both young women. The combined effect led to them once again making love several times a day, often at the spur of the moment.

"Brat," Lilly said, sticking her tongue out at the woman who had always been there for her and would always be there for her. "But you _are_ pretty darn hot. And you do all sorts of wonderful things to me in bed. And in the bathroom. And in the kitchen. And in the car. And in th—"

Miley's hand over Lilly's mouth stopped the flow of words. Miley smirked as she lifted herself up, sliding up Lilly's body to give her wife a deep kiss. As she felt Lilly's hands once again begin to roam across her body, Miley spread her legs, resting a knee on each side of Lilly's waist. "Careful," she said softly as she felt Lilly's finger dance around a place Miley wanted her in desperately, "if we keep this up one of us might get pregnant."

Lilly grinned. "I'll take that chance," she said as she slid her finger into the insanely hot wetness that was her Miley, her wife. Miley moaned, speech momentarily lost as she pulled Lilly in as much as she could, her fingers wrapping around Lilly's wrist and tugging harder, deeper. Lilly watched as Miley sat up, her back arching and her abdominal muscles contracting as she hit an orgasm less than a minute after Lilly had slid into her. "You're amazing," Lilly whispered, more to herself than to Miley, who was lost in her own ecstasy. "So beautiful..."

As Miley began to recover, she smiled down at Lilly and started to bend back down for another kiss when she felt Lilly once again begin to stroke her from inside. "Ohhhh," she groaned, unable to halt her downward motion but not exactly in full control either. Instead Miley's head fell slightly to the side, her descent eased by Lilly's other hand until her head was resting next to Lilly's. Miley's breath poured against Lilly's cheek and neck as the young blonde swiftly pulled her best friend to another mouthwatering orgasm, all while Miley's groans and sighs formed a makeshift song that sent shivers throughout Lilly's body.

Satisfied that Miley had gotten enough, Lilly rolled over so she could carefully lay Miley on her back. As she took in the sight of her wife resting on their bed, her face flushed and her body glistening in sweat, Lilly felt a sense of pride. Of satisfaction, and accomplishment. _I make her this happy. I give her this kind of joy, this love._ She felt tears come to her eyes unbidden, and she let them form and then spill forth, running down her cheeks.

As Miley's eyes fluttered open, Lilly felt her heart skip a beat. Miley's bright blue eyes immediately locked on to Lilly's own, and Miley managed to weakly say, "You make me happy, Lilly. Nothing else could ever make me as happy as I am with you."

Lilly sniffled as she reflexively wiped her tears away; she then leaned forward and tenderly kissed Miley on the lips. "How did you know what I was thinking?" she asked as she pulled her lips away from Miley's.

Miley's eyes de-focused momentarily, then their bright gaze focused again on Lilly's face. She reached up and lightly held Lilly's face with her right hand. "Like we always know, silly Lilly. Because I was thinking it too."

Lilly started to get out of the bed to close the window, but Miley found the strength to grab her wrists. "No," Miley said quietly but firmly, and the need in her voice held Lilly more strongly than any physical strength ever could. "Leave it open. I want you to hold me, sweetheart. I need you to hold me now."

Lilly smiled. "Any time, Miles," she said as she slid her legs down along the bed, using her foot to lift up the edge of the covers to where she could grab them with her hand and then pull them up over her and Miley's bodies. As Lilly closed her eyes and settled down into the bed, Miley rolled over to where she could rest her head on Lilly's shoulder. "Night night Miley," Lilly said.

"Mmm, night night Lilly."

After a pause, Lilly said, "I need to set the clock. We have to meet Jen in the morning."

"Already did it. Before you got out of the shower."

In the darkness of their bedroom, Lilly grinned. "I think you're the perfect wife, Miley."

"Nah, not perfect. But mighty darn close."

Lilly giggled once, and she could feel Miley do the same. "Amen to that, girlfriend."

"Say your prayers, Lil."

"Yes ma'am."

"And I love you."

"Love you too, wildcat."

"Surfer girl."

"Pop princess."

"Movie star."

"Baby momma."

Miley placed a kiss on Lilly's cheek, then she whispered, "_Your_ baby's momma, Lilly Truscott. And only yours. Now go to sleep, honey, 'cause we've got a full day tomorrow."

**Author's Afterword:** My apologies for this chapter taking a bit longer than I usually do. I had an amazingly hard time working on this chapter for various reasons, as so many things kept popping up to occupy my time, both positive and negative.

If any of you aren't familiar with what the modern (or New Earth, as DC Comics refers to them) Supergirl and Batwoman look like, you can find good pictures at Wikipedia or at the DC Database at .com. Supergirl was always going to be Lilly's costume, just because she has the blonde hair and the body to pull it off, but Miley's took me a bit of time to consider, mainly because of her gorgeous hair. She has to hide her hair so much as Hannah that I was determined to find a costume where she could let it be free in all its beauty. When I saw the variant cover to Final Crisis: Revelations #3 with Batwoman on it and her hair falling all around her, that made my decision for me. I held off on the actual Halloween party until next chapter so that everyone can get a visual image of how Miley and Lilly will look in their costumes before reading that chapter.

Okay, next chapter brings us the Halloween party! But before that, it's time for Jen to be let in on the secret. How will she react? We'll see then. See you soon!

-- Jo --


	4. Chapter 4: World's Finest

**Author's Note:** Whoa, I love the great reviews! Thanks to everyone for reading and leaving me your feedback, and I'll do my best to answer your questions. **Bladed Darkness**, the modern Batwoman is indeed a lesbian, and her on- and off-again girlfriend has become the new Question (and one of my favorite characters). DC has always been pretty good about presenting gay relationships in a very realistic light, just like they do with straight relationships; some of them make it, and some of them don't. Batwoman's sexual orientation didn't have any effect on me picking her for Miley's costume; I just liked how Miley would look in that outfit, particularly her hair. **Seraphinn**, I honestly don't know what the two of them plan on doing with their double lives as they get older. One option that had come to mind would be keep the secret in their family until their deaths, then reveal it to the world (which would probably care a lot less by then and thus spare their descendants from the craziness). I suppose I'll just have to see what the characters want as they age through the stories. **Redneckarcher**, this is certainly not the last story. After this one is complete (and I think it's going to be a longer one), there are still two more stories I have planned in this septology. **Grownup-Truscott**, I love your idea! The concept of _Hannah Montana_ on Logo is a _very_ interesting one... But on a more serious note, I do find it really striking that Disney has steadfastly avoided any major gay characters on their shows. Usually the competition between them and Nick for television shows leads to quite a bit of copycat plots, but Disney has nothing to respond to _South of Nowhere_. I still think that they could spin _HM_ into a more grown-up show, say with Miley and Lilly in college and building a relationship. Put it into a later time slot and it'd be a ratings monster, especially with _SoN_ over. **Stupid-Lollies**, Sarah keeps me confused when it comes to her relationships. However, this one with Cassie seems to be quite serious. After a few dates Sarah realized that she just didn't have any real fire with Dani, much like Cassie realized the same with Mr. Corelli. Both of them left those relationships on friendly terms, then they slowly took their time growing closer to each other as friends before finally taking the plunge (quite literally, in Sarah's case) at the previous Halloween party. And Miley and Lilly haven't moved houses, they've moved bedrooms! Since Robbie Ray has moved in with Ruthie back in Misty Hollow for an indefinite period, Miley and Lilly decided to get a new bed and move themselves into what used to be his master bedroom. They realized that with a baby on the way they needed more room, so they're remaking their old bedroom into the baby's room currently. At this point in time Robbie Ray has already transferred the ownership of the house to them officially, too. However, do expect to see him back in Malibu before long. **DataAndrd**, my apologies for Sarah's tossing us a curve ball between stories, but she seems to be comfortable with her choice now. She took quite some time after deciding to just be friends with Dani, but she seems happy with Cassie. At this point the age difference between her and Cassie remains four years, but now it's the four years between twenty-six and twenty-two rather than the four years between twenty-two and eighteen. Big difference there. And you don't have to worry about the teacher/student conflict anymore, since Sarah frequently fills in at Seaview as a substitute teacher now. Oh, and if some of you are wondering whether or not Sarah went to college, she graduated a few months before this story begins with her Bachelor's of Science degree in Environmental Health. She took extra classes to graduate a year early, and she's currently working on her Master's degree. **Coffeeandcommunity**, you made me consider an interesting possibility that hadn't crossed my mind until I read your review: is it possible that some of Miley's antics in her increasingly diva-esque real life _are_ staged, or at least planned out? I mean, the entire premise of the HM movie is that Miley Stewart gets entirely too swept up in Hannah's celebrity and the Hollywood lifestyle, necessitating a move back to Tennessee to rediscover who she truly is (and to hopefully realize that she and Lilly are in love and belong together for the rest of their lives!). The real hole in that theory is that pulling something of that scale off would require a huge amount of cooperation between dozens if not hundreds of people, as well as ongoing flawless performances from Miley and her family. Still, I think I'd prefer the whole deal with this manfriend of hers being faked, because if her parents are really letting the two of them "date" (read: fool around), well, then that's just icky. Oh, and about the sex of the baby... Genetically speaking, a child born from DNA contributed by Miley and Lilly will _have_ to be female, since neither of them carries a Y sex chromosome needed to trigger male development in an embryo. The fertility doctors informed them of that fact early on, so they shared the information with all their family and friends way back then.

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo P.

Chapter 4: World's Finest

_Don't want to be treated differently_

_I want to keep it all inside_

_Half the time I've got my name in the lights_

_But I'm always by your side_

_--_Hannah Montana_, _"Just Like You" (Lileyverse version)

As Miley and Lilly waited in the lobby just outside the recording studio on the fourteenth floor of the Dyseni Records building, they sat together on the sofa in the green room area outside the control room.

"We've spent a lot of time here, haven't we?" Miley asked as she idly played with a strand of Hannah's long blonde hair.

Lilly smiled from underneath Lola's bright green wig as she looked at her best friend. "Yeah, we have," she said. "Most of mine was spent either out here or in that control room, listening to you work your magic." She smiled at Miley and shifted to lean against the young woman she loved with all her body and soul.

Miley smiled as she put her arm around her wife and hugged her. "You worked your own magic those days, girlfriend. It was just on me."

"Aww, you're sweet, hon," Lilly said, closing her eyes as she snuggled into Miley's embrace.

The door abruptly bursting open signaled the arrival of their manager Jen Kittrell. "Sorry I'm a bit late," Jen said. "Lots more traffic than I was expecting coming out of L.A."

"You living in the big city?" asked Miley curiously. Hannah and Lola weren't supposed to know that Jen was from Malibu; that was Miley and Lilly who would know that particular information.

Jen nodded as she looked at one of her bosses. "Yeah, when my husband and I came back to the area we figured that would be easier, since my clients were most likely going to be living in Los Angeles, like you two."

Lilly smirked a bit. "Who said we lived in Los Angeles?" she asked smugly, getting a surprised look from Jen.

"Okay, let's head down to the garage so we can hit the road," Miley said, standing up quickly to forestall any other questions just yet.

As they stepped onto the elevator, Jen hit the button for the private garage level. "I figured that one of us would ride with you, Jen, just in case traffic separated us," Miley said.

"So I'll be driving, and you can just follow me," Lilly said, a twinkle in her eye. Something about her Lola persona made her feel rather mischievous, and that combined with her natural competitiveness contributed significantly to Lola's fun-loving personality. As soon as the elevator doors opened, the three young women started walking over to Hannah's electric blue Roadster, but Miley and Lilly kept walking past it, stopping at another Tesla Roadster, this one a glossy black. Lilly tapped in the code to open the door, reaching in and pulling out a black baseball cap which she promptly handed to Miley. "We like to keep a low profile, obviously," Lilly said, "so we try to switch out cars from coming in to when we leave. Never can tell when someone's following you, after all."

Jen nodded her head. She hadn't thought of that, but it made perfect sense. "Okay, let me get my car and I'll meet you right back here."

Within minutes they were on the road, Lilly leading the way in their obsidian Roadster and Jen and Miley following her in Jen's silver Acura NSX. As they left Los Angeles, Jen asked Miley, "So where do you two live? Since it's obviously _not_ Los Angeles."

"Malibu," Miley said, keeping her expression neutral for the time being. "It's a heck of a lot calmer than the big city, and the press is nowhere near as aggressive. But we're still close enough to get our work done without too long of a drive."

"That's cool," Jen said, nodding. "I'm actually from Malibu myself." She gave Miley a glance, doing her best to smile and make it look normal. Miley knew Jen well enough to realize that smiling wasn't something Jen often did, but that only made her appreciate the effort even more.

"We really love it," Miley said. "We've lived there for several years now. It was the first place I'd ever lived outside of Tennessee."

Jen glanced at Miley out of the corner of her eye, then she turned her attention back to the road ahead of them. She stayed right behind Lilly's Roadster as they drove west, leaving the traffic of Los Angeles behind them. After not quite twenty-five minutes, they passed by Seaview High School as they drew near to the Truscott home.

"That's my old high school," Jen said, her voice showing neither happiness nor sadness as she spoke. "We won the district soccer championship my senior year."

"Yeah, I saw that on your resume. Didn't you go to Stanford on a soccer scholarship?"

Jen nodded her head. "That game really had a lot to do with me getting a scholarship and going to college."

"But it took more than just a soccer game," Miley added. "I mean, you obviously had to work in school and in college to make the grades and get your work done."

"I guess," Jen said, and now her voice betrayed just a touch of longing. "Sometimes I miss having teammates," she said softly. "People I could trust. Business is so full of assholes out for themselves first that you wind up not trusting much of anybody."

Miley had to keep from reaching out and touching Jen's hand, but she managed. "You can trust us," she said, "just like we're learning to trust you, Jen."

Jen smiled as she turned onto the street where Miley and Lilly lived. "Yeah," she said. "I guess I can live with that."

"It's right up here," Miley said, pointing at their house just as Lilly put on her turn signal and then turned into the driveway. Lilly pulled all the way into the carport, letting Jen fit most of her car in the carport as well.

As Lilly got out of her black Tesla Roadster and hurried to unlock the kitchen door, Jen asked Miley, "Your neighbors freak out much that you two live here?"

Miley got out and walked quickly to the door before she turned to say to Jen, "Well, um, they kinda... don't know." Seeing the look on Jen's face, Miley hurriedly added, "It's complicated." Lilly got the door open, letting all three women walk inside the kitchen.

Jen looked around. "Well, this is nice. Not to piss you two off or anything, but I expected something bigger and fancier."

"No offense taken," Lilly said as she tossed her and Miley's caps onto the table. She walked across the kitchen, leading Jen over to the couch. Lilly shared a nervous look with Miley. It was time.

"This house is always going to be special to us," Miley said, and Lilly felt a slight blush across her face as she realized what Miley was talking about. She reached over and took Miley's hand as they sat on the love seat, facing Jen where she sat on the couch. "Upstairs is where we made love for the very first time," Miley said softly, "so that by itself makes it special. But we've had lots and lots of good memories in this house, and we've still got lots more to make here."

Lilly smiled at her wife. "Softie." She looked at Jen and added, "Plus this place is enough to keep us busy taking care of it. I don't think we could handle anything bigger and still work and go to school."

Jen raised an eyebrow at that last phrase. "You two are in college? Where?"

"We go to USC," said Lilly, "but not as Hannah and Lola."

Miley leaned forward as she said, "Jen, we've just trusted you with a big secret, where we live. But now we're about to trust you with an even bigger secret, one that you might not believe. But it's true."

Jen leaned back on the couch and crossed her legs. She lifted an arm up and made a dismissive waving motion as she said, "Try me," with a smile. "And again, I swear I won't tell anyone any of your secrets."

Miley and Lilly looked at each other and swallowed. They always dreaded this moment more than anyone else could ever know, the moment when they revealed their true identities to someone close to them. The reactions could vary from hysterical happiness to screaming resentment, and simply not knowing what a particular person's reaction would be was what made this revelation so painful for Miley and Lilly both. It was, in a way, quite similar to coming out, those excruciating moments when someone's mouth feels numb from the words of truth that spill forth, anxiously awaiting a friend's or family's response. It was never easy for either of them, and that was part of why they continued to keep this secret from so many people close to them. "Okay, Jen," Lilly said. "It's time you know our secret." She and Miley released each other's hand, and as one they reached up and removed their wigs, shaking out their long natural hair once freed.

"HOLY FUCKING SHIT!" Jen screamed, stumbling off the couch and nearly falling backwards as her heels slipped on the hardwood floor. "What the _hell?_" she yelled, pushing herself backwards along the couch as she couldn't tear her eyes off the sight of her friends Lilly and Miley fidgeting where they sat, holding Lola Montana's and Hannah Montana's wigs in their hands. Jen whipped her head around, looking around the room. "Is this some joke? Are there cameras in here or something?" she continued to yell, finally bumping against the armrest of the couch, able to scoot no farther away. "If this winds up on YouTube as some kind of prank, I'll—"

"There aren't any cameras, Jen," Miley said, her voice quiet but serious, "and this isn't a joke."

Lilly nodded as she got up. She tossed Lola's bright green wig onto the table and moved to sit down on the couch, taking the end opposite from Jen. "We're really Hannah and Lola, and we always have been," she said carefully, trying not to freak Jen out any more than she already was... and she was obviously registering rather high on the freak-out scale at the moment.

"Jen, calm down," Miley said, trying to avoid any sudden movements like she would with a wild animal. "This is where we live. Our neighbors don't know we're Hannah and Lola Montana, because we bust our butts to make sure no one catches us. And that's how we want it. We don't want people taking pictures of us with spy cameras, or waiting at the end of our driveway with news crews. We want to live as much of a normal life as we can, and using the Hannah and Lola identities lets us do that."

Lilly said, "But if the secret ever got out that Hannah and Lola were Miley and Lilly Truscott—"

"Or if someone even found out they were just disguises, not real people themselves," Miley cut in, looking at Jen pointedly.

"Right, because just knowing that would have everybody trying to figure out who they really were, which would make people start asking too many questions. So we let the world believe that Hannah and Lola are just really good at keeping themselves off the radar when they want to disappear."

Miley turned to look at Lilly with a smile. "We _are_ pretty good, girlfriend."

Lilly returned Miley's smile, taking her hand as Miley moved to stand next to Lilly, who leaned against her hip and leg. "Years of practice," Lilly said quietly as she released Miley's hand and instead slipped her arm between Miley's legs to hold her best friend's left thigh. She turned to look at Jen, then she motioned for Jen sit back down next to them on the couch. "It's okay, Jen. C'mon, sit back down." Warily Jen complied. "So now you know the biggest secret Hannah and Lola have." Lilly reached over with her free hand and carefully took Jen's right hand. "We trust you."

Jen looked at Lilly's hand, Lola's bright, sparkly bracelets still snugly in place around her wrist. Finally she looked up, only to see two matching pairs of bright blue eyes watching her closely. "I'm not going to run off, if that's what you two are afraid of," Jen said.

"That's one thing," Miley said, keeping a straight face.

"And I'm sure as hell not going to tell anybody about where Hannah and Lola live... or who they really are."

Lilly and Miley felt their hearts slow their frantic beating, each girl knowing that the other's was keeping pace with her own. "And this is actually going to work out pretty well, because you can come over here for business stuff and people will just assume that we're hanging out because we're friends," Lilly said happily.

"Well, once we actually invite Jen and Lee over to see the house," Miley said. "Since neither of them has ever been here before, how would Jen know how to get here?"

"Who says that I've never been over here before?" Jen asked with a smile. "But if that was an offer to let you two cook us dinner one night, then I'll say yes for both Lee and me right now."

"Deal!" said Miley, reaching out to shake hands. "My Lilly makes the best cornbread outside'a Tennessee! We can do dinner for you two one night next week." As they shook, Lilly headed to the kitchen.

"I'll fix us something to drink," Lilly said. "What do you want, Jen?"

"Well, since we have these damn—"

"Language," said Miley with a smile, patting her stomach lightly.

Jen sighed loudly. "These _darn_ contract offers to go over, I suppose I don't need to have a beer or anything."

"Well, that's good, because we don't keep anything like that in the house," Lilly called out as she retrieved glasses from the cabinets. "Neither Miley or I drink. We don't like the taste, and we don't want to send the message to our fans that it's cool to drink."

"Okay, then you have some juice or water or something?" Jen asked as she set her briefcase on the coffee table and opened the latches.

"Ummm, we have all three," Lilly said as she peered into the refrigerator. "Juice, water, and... something."

Jen looked at Miley, who was grinning. "She like that all the time?" Jen asked.

Miley nodded. "Pretty much. The sass is part of her charm."

"I heard that!" said Lilly, her voice coming from behind the refrigerator door.

"See?" Miley said, shrugging her shoulders. "But I love her," she said warmly, and the softening of her blue eyes gave a hint at just how deep of a hold Lilly had on Miley's heart.

Lilly carried two glasses of what looked like orange juice over to the coffee table, setting them down away from the briefcase and papers. "I love you too," Lilly said, bending over to place a kiss on top of Miley's head. "Let me get my glass, and then we can get started sorting through these contract offers for Hannah."

Now it was Jen's turn to smile. "Oh, we got a couple more offers yesterday evening," Jen said, "and I think one of them in particular deserves your consideration."

Four hours later Lilly and Miley waved goodbye to Jen as she backed out their driveway, on her way to meet with Hannah's attorney. Miley and Lilly had told Jen that they wanted to have three days to make a decision on whether or not to take the quite surprising contract offer, and Jen wanted to take advantage of that time to do just a bit more research on the contract's offers.

"This was a really good morning," Lilly said as she stood next to Miley, holding her wife with her left arm.

"I'll say," Miley said. "Now we need to check in with Ashley and Oliver and see if they need us to bring anything to the party tonight."

Lilly looked at the clock on the wall as they walked back inside. "Wow, the morning just went away fast, didn't it?"

"And part of the afternoon," Miley added. "You want to go down to Rico's and grab some lunch?"

Lilly smiled. "Greasy food? On the hot beach? With you?" After a pause, she eagerly said, "I am _so_ there!" as she hopped up and down in place.

"It don't take much to excite ya, does it?" Miley said, drawling her words a bit more than usual.

"Nope!" said Lilly quickly. She grabbed Miley's hand and tugged her toward the back door. "Let's go, slowpoke!"

As Miley and Lilly took their late lunch, Jen Kittrell pulled into the parking space designated for her car in the upscale apartment complex she and her husband were living in. She grabbed her briefcase as she got out of her car, locking the doors as she swung hers closed. Her feet were screaming at her for wearing heels this long, and she promised herself that she'd find a more comfortable pair or two tomorrow. Hannah and Lola—or Miley and Lilly, for that matter—had given her the next day off while they thought about the contract offers, on the condition that Jen do nothing related to business and instead just enjoy a day with her husband.

As she climbed the stairs to the apartment they were living in for now, she allowed herself to smile. She had already decided that she liked her bosses, and finding out they were also her friends was just amazing. Still, she promised herself that when it was business hours, they were her bosses and not her friends. Professional relationships tended to last longer when they stayed professional. After working hours she could catch up with Miley and Lilly. She slid her key into the lock and opened the door, stepping into the cool apartment as soon as she could. "Lee, I'm home!" she yelled out. She had seen his car out front, so she knew he was here.

"Back in here," said his voice, coming from the second bedroom they had turned into a small office for now. "Looking at some houses."

Jen kicked her heels off, smiling thinly as they tumbled across the floor into the closet. "Hate you fuckers," she mumbled to the heels as they came to a rest against the back wall of the closet. She set her briefcase on the sofa, then she took her hairsticks out as she walked down the hallway. "Find anything good?" she asked her husband as she walked over to stand beside him where he was working at the computer.

"Yes and no," Lee Potson mumbled, more to himself than to his wife. Jen kicked him in the back of his leg, making him yell, "Ow!"

"Aw, did I hurt the big, strong man?" Jen said teasingly as she moved behind him to rub his shoulders. "How about if I do this, then?"

Lee leaned back into Jen's strong fingers and hands. "That makes up for it pretty damn good," he said.

"Good, then you can do it for me in a minute. Now tell me what you found before I smack you again."

Lee turned his attention back to the screen. "Well, I couldn't find anything in our price range here in L.A. But I found some stuff up the Pacific Coast Highway that looks good."

Jen leaned down to where she could whisper in Lee's ear. "How about... Malibu?" she purred into his ear before she kissed him on his neck.

Lee felt shivers go down his back. Apparently Jen was in an amorous mood this afternoon, which meant some pretty energetic sex was about to happen. "You trying to start something, Jen?" Lee asked with a grin.

"Maybe," Jen replied, her voice playful. "You think you can finish it for me?"

"I think I can manage for a woman as hot as you."

Jen kissed him on the other side of his neck, sending another surge of shivers down his back. "You sure as hell better," she whispered. "Because things have just been kick-ass today, and some passionate lovin' with my man is the last thing I have left to make it a perfect day."

Lee turned to where he could kiss his wife, but he was pleasantly surprised as she pulled him out of his seat and down to the floor on top of her as she began to undo the buttons on her shirt. "What prompted this?" he asked, hurriedly adding, "Not that I'm complaining!"

Jen let him lift up her bra as she went to work on his pants, pausing only to pull up her skirt. "Spending all that time around my bosses," she answered her husband. "They're so much in love and so hot for each other that it kinda rubs off on pretty much everyone around them."

"Do they let you work overtime?" Lee asked as he pulled her panties down, getting a deep, throaty laugh from his fiery wife who chose to reply in a very nonverbal manner.

As the sun began to set, casting a rosy sheen across the Malibu sky, Miley and Lilly pulled into Oliver and Ashley's driveway. Cars were parked along the road for quite a distance, but Miley and Lilly had permission to park in the driveway. Ashley learned two years ago to hire some security for parties this big, and the crew working tonight's party had already been told to expect the Truscotts and treat them like VIPs. As Lilly stopped just inside the driveway, the valet smiled at them. "Hey ladies," the young man with short, dark hair said with a smile. "Lilly and Miley Truscott, right?"

"Yep," said Lilly as she got out of the car, smoothing her rather short bright blue Supergirl skirt. She and Miley had paid to have their costumes custom made, and the brilliant blue fabric of Lilly's outfit shimmered as it caught the last of the daylight. "Once you get it parked, just hit the button there," Lilly said, pointing to the Engine Off switch on the dashboard. "And it'll lock itself when you close the door." She handed the teenager a twenty with a smile. "Park it next to Ashley's fleet," she said with a wink and a grin.

"Yes ma'am," he said, smiling as he slid into the driver's seat.

"And watch the acceleration! It takes off like a scalded dog!" Lilly yelled through the window, getting a nod from the valet and a laugh from her wife.

"Takes off like a scalded dog?" asked Miley, a wry grin on her face. She motioned for Lilly to turn around.

Lilly turned her back to Miley, who went to work attaching her long red cape. The cape fastened with magnetic clasps, allowing it to safely break away if it became snagged on anything. "I must be hanging out with you too much," Lilly said, rolling her eyes. "If I had a dime for every time I've heard you say that..."

"You'd be a few bucks richer but still married to me," replied Miley, smoothing the cape's fabric out. She stepped back as Lilly turned around, looking remarkably like the modern Supergirl down to the red leather boots, also custom made to match the costume perfectly. "Do me?" Miley asked, turning around as she handed Lilly her own cape.

Lilly stepped close and firmly gripped Miley's right buttock, squeezing it through the thin black material of Miley's Batwoman costume. The fabric was made of some blend of Lycra, Spandex and some other synthetic fabric, and it clung to Miley's stunning body like an inky second skin. Her curves looked amazing in the black outfit with red trim, and even the way the utility belt hung at an angle across her hips screamed sex appeal to all lookers. "You sure you want me to do you right here?" Lilly whispered in Miley's left ear as she slid her hand down the curve of her lover's buttocks toward more dangerous territory.

Miley leaned back against her wife, forcing herself to breath in and out slowly and deeply. "Not fair," she said with a pout in her voice. "You know I couldn't wear any panties under this costume without 'em showin', so don't get me too wet. Not yet."

Lilly smiled and patted her wife's butt. "Knowing you're not wearing anything underneath that costume turns me on sooo much, girlfriend," she said lovingly. "And I'll show you just how much later tonight." She attached Miley's long cape with the same magnetic clasps that were on her own costume, and as Miley wrapped the flowing cape around herself Lilly whistled softly. "Wow. You look picture perfect, Miles." Miley had even put on the mask that had come with the costume, completing the look nicely. "Now let's go tell Ashley to get this party rolling!"

The size of Ashley's party was enormous, forcing most of the party to be held outside in their sprawling backyard. Two tents were set up, one for refreshments and the other to house the band playing tonight. The majority of the house was off-limits to most guests, with the party goers being kept to the game room, the large den, the kitchen and a large sitting room. Televisions were playing something in the den and the sitting room as Miley and Lilly walked through them, collecting whistles and shouts of appreciation from the many guests in those rooms.

"I think we're gonna be popular tonight," Miley said with a smile. Her black lipstick made her face look a bit intimidating to most people, but to Lilly it just looked cute.

"Oooh, Triscuits!" Lilly said suddenly. "With that cream cheese and herb dip that Ashley's cook makes!" She turned and made a dash for the counter where several choices of appetizers were laid out. The speed with which Lilly closed in made the server standing there jump slightly, but he forced a smile as Lilly stopped, her fingers twitching with eagerness at the sight of the treats she liked so much. She looked at the server. "You have a plate, or should I just grab as many as I can carry?"

Miley almost laughed at the young man's expression, but her laughter stilled when she him flash Lilly a grin that he obviously intended to be charming. When he stole a glance at Lilly's bare stomach in her Supergirl costume, Miley slid in between the two of them. "I catch you sneakin' a peek at my woman again, and I make you regret it," she growled in a very intimidating voice as she wrapped her cape around herself like Oliver had showed her last week. He had assured her that it made her look rather mysterious, and judging from the look of fright on the server's face it appeared Oliver had been right on the money. Miley decided to play it a bit further. "Now cough up a plate. Supergirl's hungry." She continued to stare directly at him, holding his gaze with a steely glare until he turned and grabbed a plate. As soon as he turned, Miley stepped back and let Lilly step forward.

"Hi," Lilly said sweetly, giving him another start as he saw her standing there once again. She took the plate he offered, then she said, "You probably shouldn't try to look at my butt either. Or my legs. My wife gets really jealous." She somehow held a straight face as she filled the plate with Triscuits topped with a dollop of the cream cheese and herb spread. As she turned to leave, she noticed that the poor boy was staring anywhere but at her. Lilly leaned in and whispered, "But you might want to check out her butt if you can. It's terrific. Just remember, look but don't touch. Or have dirty thoughts. I _am_ the Girl of Steel, you know." She turned around and took Miley's gloved hand as they walked out of the kitchen and into the back yard.

They soon spotted Ashley, dressed as Cleopatra and showing quite a bit of skin herself, standing near the pool. She was talking with two girls Miley and Lilly didn't know, but they figured they could remedy that. They walked over to a table near the pool where a drink bar was set up. "Two Sprites," said Miley as Lilly waved to Ashley, getting her attention. Ashley motioned for them to come over, so Miley handed Lilly her drink and they made their way over to the pool.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so glad you two made it!" Ashley gushed as she hugged first Lilly, then Miley. "Wow, Miley, you look scary and sexy all at once. And Lilly, you just look insanely sexy."

"I think she looks amazing in that costume," Lilly said, taking the time to very obviously look her best friend up and down. "It really shows off her figure, and it's sexy as all get out."

Miley twirled around, swinging her cape behind her in a manner that was cute but not particularly intimidating. "Do I look like a superhero?" she asked playfully, holding the cape up to hide most of her body behind it.

"No," Lilly said as she slipped in between Miley's cape and her body and wrapped her arms and a leg around her lover, "you look like a goddess." She kissed Miley, softly at first but then deepening in intensity.

Before either young woman realized it, they had drawn a respectable crowd. When they finally broke for air, a round of applause greeted their return to reality, making both girls blush. However, Miley's mask hid most of hers, while Lilly's red face was quite evident. Lilly never let go of the woman she loved; instead she held more tightly to Miley, drawing strength from the warm body that felt so good, so comforting against her own. The figure that seemed to be sculpted to match her own exactly, allowing them to fit as closely, as perfectly, as two halves of a whole ever could. Lilly looked up into Miley's glittering blue eyes. "Am I still blushing?" she asked softly.

"Just a teensy bit," Miley answered, the smile on her face comforting rather than mirthful. "But it only makes you look more beautiful. More alive."

Lilly leaned her head against Miley's neck and shoulder. "You always know just what to say to make me feel better, Miles," she whispered, her lips dancing against Miley's soft skin, exposed just enough at the neck to let Lilly touch it directly. "Don't ever stop doing that, okay?"

Miley looked around at the people still staring at them, and just like that she tuned them out. Only Lilly mattered at this moment, and only Lilly would get her attention for the next few seconds. She focused on her best friend as she gently said, "I won't, I promise." As she felt Lilly's burst of anxiety dissipate, Miley allowed herself to relax as well, and the sights and sounds of the party came flooding back into her perception. "You better now?" she asked Lilly, who seemed to be a bit more steady on her feet and significantly less self-conscious. Miley released Lilly from her embrace, but she noticed Lilly smoothly took Miley's gloved hand in her own. She glanced over at Lilly, who jerked her head toward the mostly male crowd watching them and then looked back at Miley with a smile as she squeezed her hand. _Aha. Marking your property, Lilly Bear? _Miley smiled._ I'm just fine with that._

In reply Lilly just smiled again and lightly tugged Miley forward, in the direction of Ashley and her two friends, who looked dumbstruck. "Hey Ash," Lilly said, her voice as cheery as ever. "Thanks for inviting us again this year."

Ashley looked stunned. "You're kidding, right?" she asked. "You two are my best friends. What kind of friend would I be to throw this totally rocking party and _not_ invite the two women I love most in a non-sexual way?"

Miley smiled, her mouth hanging open slightly as Lilly giggled softly. "Hittin' the champagne a bit early, huh, Ash?" she asked with a grin.

Ashley grinned in return. "Nah. Just a glass. Getting falling down drunk isn't my idea of a good time." She turned to the two other women with her and said, "Mindie, Kate, these are my best friends Miley and Lilly."

"Oh, okay! Wow, you said that they were really in love, and you're right!" said one, a blonde just slightly taller than Ashley. She was apparently supposed to be a fairy princess of some sort judging from the wings on her back and her dress. "I'm Mindie. Ashley and I are lab partners in Chemistry this semester." She gestured at Miley and Lilly and said, "So, how long have you two been, um..."

"Married?" asked Lilly. Without waiting for a reply she said, "Five years, and we were together another year before that. And we were best friends for five years before _that_." She looked at Miley and said, "Wow, I never realized that."

Miley smiled at Lilly. "What?"

"We've been together half our lives now. That is so cool!"

Lilly was practically bouncing up and down in her boots at that observation, but before Miley could reply a shriek came from across the yard.

"No, Cass! Don't do it! I'll behave, I swear!" yelled Sarah Sweet as she ran through the crowd, skirting the edge of the pool nimbly in a Pocahontas costume, complete with a feather in her hair. A few steps behind her was Cassie Hughes, dressed in what had to be a Naughty Schoolgirl outfit, complete with white blouse, plaid miniskirt and black heels. For the size of her heels, Cassie was doing an excellent job of catching up to Sarah, who bolted through the crowd trying to get away from her girlfriend. Even from a distance Cassie's naughty grin was quite evident, and it looked like she was holding a water gun of some kind in her hand as she chased Sarah.

Miley turned to Ashley, who was covering her mouth with her hand. "Dang, I love your parties," she said with a happy smile.

**Author's Afterword:** Okay, I haven't forgotten you. See? I did get the chapter done! Sorry again that it's been taking so long recently, but I promise I'm doing my best to juggle everything. Lileyland seems to be in a bit of a dry spell in terms of authors and story updates recently, but I think that's going to change soon. Hope you enjoyed a bit more time for Jen, because you're going to be seeing more of her and Lee in the future of this story. We also need to get back to the party and see just what backfired on Sarah, as well as what Oliver is up to. And don't think that I've forgotten Luanne and Ron, because I definitely haven't. Next chapter up as soon as I can get it written and proofed. See you then!

-- Jo --


	5. Chapter 5: On Your Marks

**Author's Note:** Glad everyone is enjoying the story so far. Consider yourselves warned, I think this is going to end up being my longest story yet. There's just so much I want to put into this story!

Okay, questions and comments. **Portmanteau**, thank you so much for the great review and for your sweet comments. I have no plans to stop writing, so you can relax. When I finish this septology, I think I might return to a few of the time periods and write some "in-between" stories, maybe picking back up on some threads that readers would like to explore further. For anyone who's e-mailed me and hasn't gotten a reply yet, it's just because I've been extremely busy for the last month. I promise I'll get back to you as soon as I possibly can. Again, thanks to everyone for continuing to read along and for your great feedback. Nice comments make my day brighter!

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo P.

Chapter 5: On Your Marks

_Because we belong together now (yeah)_

_Forever united here somehow (yeah)_

_You got a piece of me_

_And honestly_

_My life would suck without you_

_--_Kelly Clarkson_, _"My Life Would Suck Without You"

"Hide me!" Sarah Sweet yelled as she ran behind Oliver Oken, who had just stepped out of the house and into the backyard.

"Hey!" Oliver said loudly, then he sputtered as a squirt of cold water hit him in the face. "HEY!"

"Sorry!" said Cassie Hughes, covering her mouth with the hand that wasn't holding the water gun. She stepped forward and used the end of her shirt sleeve to wipe the water off his face. "I was aiming for Pocahontas back there," Cassie said. "You were just an innocent bystander." She watched Sarah run away again, this time heading over to where Ashley stood with Miley, Lilly and two other women their age.

As Sarah stopped in front of the five other young women, she grinned at them. "That was close," she said as she turned to Ashley. "Sorry about your husband getting squirted."

"No problem," Ashley said with a grin. "Glad he came in handy."

Sarah looked at Miley and Lilly and whistled loudly. "Wow," she said. "You two look terrific!"

Lilly was wiping what looked like dark smudges off her lips as she smiled and said, "Thanks, Sarah. You look great, too." Lilly wasn't exaggerating in the least; while Sarah's hair was a bit lighter than would be expected for Pocahontas, the fake deerskin top and miniskirt showed off quite a bit of Sarah's body. She had obviously been keeping in good shape, and the time spent working on the beach had darkened her skin about as far as her natural complexion would allow it to go.

"What did you get on your lips, Lilly?" Sarah asked, her curiosity piqued by the dark smudge on her friend's mouth.

Lilly grinned as she replied, "Miley's lipstick."

Miley smiled from behind her Batwoman mask and added, "Quite a bit of my lipstick, too."

"There's always room for more," Lilly said teasingly as she gave her wife a flirtatious look.

"Keep it in your skirt, Supergirl," Miley said, keeping a straight face, "or we'll really draw a crowd."

"Oh!" said Ashley suddenly. "I just realized the band's taking their break." She opened her small bag slung over her chest and pulled out a gold CD marked only with a few numbers and letters. "Time to show off how awesome my contacts inside the record companies are," she said, winking discretely at Miley and Lilly. She hurried over to the stage, hopping up onto the platform and walking to the microphone as the band was walking off.

"Hey everybody!" Ashley said into the microphone. "First, thanks for coming to our Halloween party! It might be a couple of days late, but today's the Day of the Dead, so we're still in the spirit!" Claps and whistles went up across the yard, and Ashley smiled as she waved for everyone to come closer. "Okay, while the band is taking a break I figured this would be a great time to let everyone dance, but I also have a surprise for you." She held up the CD and paused for a moment. "Thanks to some truly _amazing_ sources inside one of the record companies, I have here two _brand new_ Hannah Montana songs from her new album coming out in a few weeks!" The crowd seemed to pause for breath for a second before people started cheering. Ashley raised her voice to be heard over the crowd and said, "Remember, you heard it here first, at the coolest Halloween party on Earth!"

As Ashley put the CD into the player hooked up to the sound system, people made their way to the dance area near the pool, Miley and Lilly among them. As most of the crowd gathered into pairs and started dancing to the opening notes of "Rock Your Body," Lilly gave Miley a knowing smile as she took her girlfriend's hands. The two of them started dancing as Lilly leaned in and said, "You know I love this song."

Miley rolled her eyes and leaned in to reply, "You love all my songs. You're easy."

Lilly nodded, not in the least offended by that comment. "For you I am," she replied. "For everybody else, I'm impossible."

The next few hours seemed to pass by in a pleasant rush. Oliver was dressed as a Roman soldier, matching Ashley's Cleopatra costume, and he insisted on taking several pictures of Miley and Lilly, posing with them in several of them. It had been nearly two weeks since Miley and Lilly had seen him, and as the party began to wind down several hours later they made a point to catch up with him and Ashley.

As the four of them sat at a poolside table talking, Miley's cell phone beeped pleasantly from its pouch on her utility belt. She took it out and opened it as she put it to her ear. "Hello?"

"_Hey Miley. How's the party?"_

"Hey Lu! Where are you? We thought you and Ron were coming to the party."

There was a sigh at the other end of the line before Luanne replied, _"Ron's still at the studio. He's really nervous about next week, and I'm about to choke him."_

"Aw, I'm sorry, Lu. Why didn't you come by yourself?"

"_I guess I'm nervous for him. Hey, you mind if I stop by tomorrow sometime?"_

Miley silently breathed a sigh of relief. She had been afraid that Luanne would want to come by tonight for some company, and Miley had plans for Lilly that didn't involve any company present. "Sure, tomorrow'd be terrific," she said, trying not to show how relieved she was.

"_Bet you're happy I'm not wantin' to come over tonight, huh?"_

Miley could hear the grin in Luanne's voice as she spoke. "Yup," she replied. "How'd you know?" Miley saw Lilly paying close attention to what she was saying, and by the expression on her face it seemed Lilly had put two and two together from what she had heard Miley say so far.

"_Oh please, I don't have to be a genius—which I am—to know that after an evening of dancing, flirting, relaxing and just partying in general you and your wife are gonna be ready to jump each other in the first closet that you walk by. Throw in those sexy costumes you had made, and I bet you twenty bucks that you don't even make it home before you two go at it."_

Miley nearly laughed. "You're on," she said. "I _do_ have _some_ self-control, you know."

"_Not when it comes to the woman you love."_

Miley started at her sister's comment, because she had in fact been staring at Lilly's face while Lilly laughed at something Oliver was telling her, thinking about how gorgeous her wife truly was. Miley smiled and simply said, "You got me there, Lu. I'll see you tomorrow, 'kay?"

"_Okay, secret sis. You two get some sleep and don't have sex all night, you hear me?"_

"Good _night_, Lu." Miley grinned as she shut her phone and slipped it back into its pouch on her belt. "Lu's comin' by tomorrow for a bit. She said Ron's as nervous as a long-tailed cat in a room full a' rockin' chairs, and I think it's drivin' her up the wall."

Oliver sipped his drink as he leaned dangerously far back in his patio chair. "What's Ron so nervous about?" he asked.

Miley opened her mouth to speak, but Lilly quickly covered her hand with her own and said, "Let me tell them, Miles, please!"

Miley smiled, her black lips curling into a dangerous appearing smile. She nodded, giving Lilly her permission.

"Ron got a job!" Lilly said excitedly. "And not just any job..."

Oliver leaned forward, pausing for several seconds before he finally said, "Well? Spit it out! You've left me hanging here!"

Lilly said, "Well, thanks to a certain someone special," pausing to smile at Miley, "Ron's now one of the guitar players for Kelly Clarkson's upcoming tour!"

"Holy cow!" said Oliver loudly. "Are you serious?"

Lilly nodded as Ashley asked, "When did that happen?"

"He went in for the tryouts a few weeks ago, and they asked him back last week. After just playing a few of her songs, they offered him the spot. It's more of a rhythm guitar than anything else, but it's a start!"

Miley added, "Plus it's with someone that we know and trust. Kelly doesn't get out and go wild when she's on the road."

"That is so cool!" said Oliver, a huge grin on his face. "Just took a little word from a certain superstar to make it happen, huh?"

"Absolutely not!" said Lilly quickly, and the harshness of her tone suggested that this subject might have a tender spot inside it.

"All I did was ask them to let him audition for the part," Miley said, trying to project calm through her voice as she gently held Lilly's hand. "Ron had to learn a dozen songs in a two week period, then he had to play them well enough to earn that spot in her tour band. He did it himself."

"And how does Luanne feel about her husband being gone for several months at a time?" asked Ashley, her voice carrying clearly as the noises of the party subsided for a few seconds and then picked back up again.

There was no quick response from either Miley or Lilly this time, so Ashley said, "Ah. That bad, huh?"

"Not exactly," Miley said, and Lilly continued by saying, "We really aren't sure how she's taking it. One minute she's happy about him getting the job, the next she's talking about how much she's gonna miss him."

Left unspoken was the full extent concern that Miley and Lilly held for Miley's twin sister. The secret of their sisterhood had remained a closely guarded one, and Miley and Lilly were both fairly sure that Luanne would never reveal the truth of her birth to anyone else beyond those who already knew. Luanne and Ron would celebrate their third anniversary in a few months, and while the two of them had learned to live with each other quite well, there remained a bond between Luanne, Miley and Lilly that could never be entirely replaced by anyone else, even by the man Luanne loved. It went beyond a family bond, even beyond a sisterly bond. Instead it encompassed so many emotions and such deep understanding of each other that none of them would ever be capable of fully putting into words. And it was that same bond that Miley and Lilly were counting on to help Luanne make it through the months that Ron would be on the road.

"I'm really worried it's gonna be hard on her," Miley finally said, breaking the tense silence. "It took her a lot of work getting used to living with someone else, and now she's gonna be living alone again for a few months."

"Luanne's tough, Miles," Oliver said, offering what comfort he could. "And she's always liked her space. Heck, you yourself told me that a few years ago."

Miley looked across the patio, watching a group of boys and a few girls wrestling playfully in the grass. She didn't speak for long seconds, not until she felt the electric touch of Lilly's fingers rest on her thigh. "I hope so," Miley finally said. "I really, really hope so."

Lilly stretched, reaching up to the night sky as she lightly groaned. Miley turned in time to see Supergirl's halter top slip dangerously high up, the gold trim around it creeping quite high up her wife's chest and hinting at the bottom of her breasts. "I'm tired," Lilly said as she relaxed, bringing her arms down to settle them possessively around Miley's shoulders. "I think it's time for my sweet wife to take me home, if nobody minds," she said, giving a sly grin to Oliver and Ashley.

"You just want to go home and have sex," Ashley said with a fake pout, turning to look away from them as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Our party's not good enough for you."

Miley turned to look in Lilly's face as Lilly gently removed the Batwoman mask from Miley's face. Once the mask was off Lilly gave Miley a kiss, then she turned to Ashley and said, "Not compared to making love to my Miley, it's not. And stop acting you're all offended, Ash. Or I'll toss your butt in the pool."

Ashley fought hard to keep from laughing. She truly did. And she might have succeeded if Oliver hadn't reached over and held up his hand and loudly said, "High five, Truscott! That one was good!" At that point, Ashley gave in and sputtered with laughter, her entire body shaking as she stood, shaking her head.

"Thanks for coming," Ashley said, hugging Miley and Lilly both at once. "Your costumes were the best here, really."

"Thanks for inviting us," replied Lilly, still holding onto Miley from behind.

"Yeah, we enjoyed ourselves a lot," Miley added. "Oliver, you be careful out there, okay?"

"I will," he replied, and there was no trace of joking in his voice now. "That was the promise I made to Ash when we got married, and I'm planning on keeping it." He stepped over and hugged his friends, then he put his arm around his wife. "Be careful going home, okay?"

"We will," Miley said. She turned her head to look at Lilly's profile, and she couldn't resist placing a quick kiss on Lilly's soft cheek. "You ready, hon?" she asked, patting Lilly's arm.

"Yup," Lilly said with a smile. She released her grip on Miley to take her hand. "Night, you two!" Lilly said as she and Miley made their way back into the house. At this point the kitchen was considerably less crowded, with most of the remaining guests out back. As they walked past the stairway leading up to the second floor, Lilly suddenly grabbed Miley's arm and yanked her onto the stairs.

"Lilly!" Miley said, getting shushed for her protest. "Lilly!" she whispered loudly. "What're you doin'?"

"What do you think, silly?" Lilly whispered as they climbed the stairs. As they reached the second floor landing, one of Ashley's security personnel stopped them before she recognized them. Miley and Lilly recognized her as one of Oliver's friends on the police force, and they smiled as they waited on her to recognize them.

"Sorry ladies," she said with a smile. "Didn't recognize you two in the costumes at first. Oliver and Ashley said you two could have the run of the house, like always."

"Thanks," Lilly said cheerily. "Kate, right?" The tall, striking brunette nodded in acknowledgment. "We'll, uh, just be using the guest room for a bit," Lilly said as she continued to lead Miley down the hall, walking backwards as she spoke to Kate. While Lilly was talking Miley took the opportunity to slip past her, and then it was Miley yanking on Lilly's hand to spin her around and pull the blonde down the hall. As they opened the door to the guest room they had stayed in several times before, Miley wasted no time in pulling Lilly in, closing the door as soon as Lilly's red cape cleared the door.

"Ooooh," Lilly said teasingly as she sat on the bed. "Does my sweetie see something she wants?" she purred as she crossed her legs, bare except for the blue miniskirt and red boots, her skirt hiked teasingly high up her thigh.

"Yeah, but I can't see all of it yet," Miley said as she grasped the bottom hem of Lilly's halter top and began to pull it over her head, "but I'm workin' on it," she added with a positively naughty grin.

Roughly twenty minutes later both Miley and Lilly lay together on the now bare bed, entangled together in a tight embrace as they gently stroked each other's back with their fingernails. "Feel better now?" Miley mumbled as she kissed Lilly's now-sweaty head.

"Better believe it," Lilly said in reply, shivering as Miley hit a particularly sensitive spot in the small of her back. "You always make me shiver when you hit that spot."

"Do I?" Miley asked teasingly, getting a light tickle on her ribs in response. "Hey! No fair tickling!"

"All's fair in love and war, remember?"

Miley considered that but didn't speak just yet. As she felt Lilly's fingertips rest lightly on her ribs, she hastily added, "Okay, okay, I remember! But I'm still feelin' the love, girlfriend. So go light on—"

"Miles, you're always going to feel my love, so that doesn't exactly make it a No Tickle condition. Try again."

"Then maybe it's too soon after making love? That work?"

Now it was Lilly's turn to think for a minute. "I guess that works. But don't abuse it too often. I like the way you squeal when I tickle you. And the way you thrash around is pretty cute, too."

The two young women lay in silence for a bit longer until Miley suddenly slapped herself on the forehead. "What is it?" Lilly asked, surprised.

Miley sighed loudly. "I owe Luanne twenty bucks."

The next morning saw Miley wake up slowly, only gradually becoming aware of the smell of the ocean air and the cries of the seagulls outside the large bedroom window at their own house. Driving home from Ashley's party had been entertaining in its own right, as they drew several interested looks at their costumes from other drivers they met on the road, but they had finally arrived home without incident. Another round of playful lovemaking had occurred before they finally fell asleep, and Miley smiled wryly as she saw her Batwoman utility belt hanging from the corner bedpost. Resting next to the alarm clock was a folded-up piece of pink paper. Miley picked it up and unwrapped it, lying back in bed and holding the note up to read it.

_Didn't want to wake you—you looked too cute. Last night was amazing! Thank you, for everything you do for me, little and big and everything in between. Went for an early morning surf. Feel free to join me if you get your lazy butt out of bed in time._

_Lilly_

Miley smiled as she saw how Lilly dotted the "i" in her name with a heart. Miley was the only person who warranted that special signature, and that was one of the little touches that she loved about her wife, how Lilly could turn something so tiny into something so touching. She kissed Lilly's name on the note, then she tossed it on the nightstand as she rolled out of bed and began searching for something to wear.

Lilly's legs had been a bit sore when she started surfing a little over an hour ago, but after a few minutes they had loosened up slightly. She was thinking about taking a break when she spied someone on the beach watching her. She blinked the salt water out of her eyes and floated up with the next wave instead of trying to ride it. She smiled as she realized it was indeed Miley standing there on the beach, then taking a seat on the towel Lilly had spread out on the hot sand. Lilly waved and then looked over her shoulder for the next wave. As she saw the wave forming behind her, she shifted into position and then began paddling as it drew near. As the wave began to crest, Lilly hopped nimbly onto her board and immediately found her balance, left foot forward and arms out to her sides as she crouched, keeping her center of gravity as low as she could.

As the roar of the wave breaking began to sound, Lilly felt like she was flying, soaring on something immensely powerful, a force that could easily overwhelm her and brutally pound her into the dark water if she were to slip, yet she showed no trace of fear. Instead she grinned harder and lost herself in the sheer joy of being a part of something so vast and uncontrollable as the ocean.

_Just like the way I love her_, Lilly thought as she expertly steered herself toward the young woman waiting for her on the beach. Miley had pulled her hair up and tied it back and a pair of sunglasses shielded her eyes from the early morning rays of the sun, but even the heather gray t-shirt and sweatpants she was wearing couldn't conceal the sheer beauty that Lilly could see in her.

"Hey," said Miley with a smile as she waded out into the light surf to greet Lilly as she glided in on her surfboard. When they were in ankle-deep water, Lilly hopped off her board and was greeted with Miley wrapping her arms around her. "Love you," Miley said as she hugged Lilly tightly.

"Love you too," Lilly answered, closing her eyes as she let herself be swept away in the current of their love, always drawing them closer to each other.

"You look amazing out there," Miley said. "As always. I love watching you do your thing."

"Just like I love watching you do yours. We just have different stages that we have fun on."

Lilly breathed in the scent of Miley-in-the-morning, secretly thrilled that Miley didn't bother to take a bath before coming down to greet her. The more obvious reason for Lilly's delight was that the two of them could take a bath together when they got back to the house, but a less obvious reason was that Lilly simply adored Miley's natural scent, especially of a morning. The combination of seeing Miley's stunning face and tousled hair, feeling the warmth of her body, and breathing in that natural scent was such a turn-on for Lilly that it had fueled quite a few of their "good morning lovemaking" sessions, as Lilly gleefully called them. "Miles, sweetheart, I _love_ the way you smell first thing in the morning," Lilly said a bit hesitantly. "Is that weird?"

Miley grinned, biting back the first playful retort that came to mind. Instead she said, "Only if it's weird that I love the way you smell when you've been surfing, with that ocean smell in your hair and the salty taste on your skin."

Lilly boldly slipped a hand into the back of Miley's sweatpants as she replied, "Well, then we're both in trouble, because it looks like we're both complete weirdos." _Hmm. No panties yet. Dirty, dirty Miley. And I love you for it!_

"Tease!" Miley said, smacking Lilly's firm butt with her right hand through the wet bikini bottom. "Now get your surfer butt inside so we can get in the shower before Jen gets over here."

As Lilly grabbed her surfboard and tucked it under her arm, Miley gathered Lilly's few items and tossed her a clean towel.

"You forget your panties when you got dressed, Miley?" Lilly asked, casting a playful glance at her best friend. They weren't that many people on this stretch of beach at this time of day, and the few that were out weren't within earshot of the two of them.

Miley responded by swatting Lilly's sexy butt again. "I didn't forget anything. I just went with the minimal amount of effort needed to come down without making a scene."

"And the minimal amount of clothes?"

"Less to take off when we get back home."

Lilly couldn't argue with that logic, so she dropped the matter. "Did I mention that the way you smell in the morning really turns me on?"

Miley rolled her eyes and for about the millionth time thanked God that He made Lilly just the way He did.

"So do you surf too, Miley?" Jen Kittrell asked roughly two hours later as the three of them sat in the living room, flipping through papers as Miley and Lilly went over Jen's summary and analysis of the various recording contract offers that had been made to Hannah.

"HA!" laughed Lilly as Miley grinned a bit self-consciously.

"Not really," Miley said. "Lilly's tried to teach me for a long time, but I do good to get up on the board before the wave's gone." She shrugged. "Coordination isn't exactly my strong suit."

"She does pretty good roller skating, though," Lilly said as she put an arm around Miley.

Jen smiled. "Just be careful with her skating. Don't need anybody getting hurt this close to concerts." She handed a summary page to each of her clients, detailing the most promising offers for Hannah and comparing them along several points. "Oh, have you decided on a name for the new album yet, Miley?"

Miley smiled as Lilly hugged her a bit more tightly. "Yeah," she said, her expression dazzling. "I want to call it _New Life_." She rubbed her stomach briefly, then she added, "For a few reasons."

"You haven't seemed to be as nauseous lately, have you?" Lilly asked, out of the blue.

"Nope. Not for about a week or so."

"Good. Maybe she's finally giving you a break." Lilly leaned down and pressed her mouth to Miley's stomach through her shirt and said with her baby voice, "Are you giving your momma a break, little baby girl? I hope you are, because she needs it! Your momma and mommy love you, yes we do!"

Miley giggled as she patted Lilly's head. "That tickles," she said lightly. "You think she can hear you?"

Lilly shrugged as she sat up. "I don't know. But it's never too early to try."

Jen watched them interact for a minute, then she carefully asked, "Not to be to steer the conversation back on track or anything, but what do you think of the contract offers, Miley?"

Miley picked up one of the summary sheets and held it so Lilly could read it with her. They both went through a respectable number of facial expressions and grunts before they looked at each other.

"I kind of like the last one," Miley said.

"Yeah, it looks nice, but this one sounds like it might be fun, too," Lilly said, tapping the sheet.

"The third one?" Miley asked, looking at the sheet.

Lilly nodded her head, keeping her eyes locked on Miley's. "Yeah. Lots of risk in it, but if it works..."

Now Miley nodded. She looked up at Jen. "You think three smaller companies merging to form one big one would actually work? I mean, financially?"

Jen's expression was surprised as she said, "Are you kidding? With Hannah Montana as their headlining artist? You bet your sweet ass it'll work!" She saw Lilly hiding her laughter behind a hand, and Jen added, "Sorry."

"No no!" said Lilly, waving at Jen. "Her ass _is_ sweet, and cute too!" She bent down to Miley's stomach and said, "Sorry baby, but Mommy just couldn't resist. You know how crazy Mommy is about Momma."

"Can we get off of talkin' about my butt and back to the contracts?" Miley growled, giving Lilly a small Look. As Lilly sat back up, again hiding her smile behind her hand, Miley said, "_Thank_ you." She turned back to Jen, who had managed to not even crack a smile at Lilly's antics. "I like the thought of having the approach of a smaller company with the oomph of a bigger record company," she said. "And I like the chance to participate in some of the administrative stuff, but I'm just not sure if I'm ready for that big a jump yet. Right now all I want is to keep writin' songs and singin' 'em for my fans, and that's it."

"You want to take their offer of having your own imprint for your music? They're offering quite a bit more freedom with that imprint than most artists get. You can get your feet wet with helping manage just your music on the label for now, and you can always think about recruiting and signing others to your imprint later on."

Lilly turned to look at Miley. "You can do that? If they set up your own label under the bigger company, I mean?"

Miley nodded. "Yeah, that's part of what they're offering."

"You could sign Kelly," Lilly said with a smile. "And maybe even Hayley and Paramore."

"Well," said Jen, and now a faint smile began to spread across her face, "we don't have any names for the three companies listed on the merger proposal, but it just so happens that Paramore's label is one of the three." Lilly's arms shot up to the ceiling in a victory pose at Jen's words, while Miley leaned forward even more.

"Crazy manager girl say what?" Miley muttered, tilting her head to the side.

"Yeah, apparently Hayley Williams and Paramore pushed really hard for their record company to make you an offer. Their company didn't think it could make you a competitive offer by itself, so _this_ person called _that_ person and so on and so on until this merger proposal happened."

"Remind me to send that woman some cornbread," Miley said under her breath, more to herself than anyone else. In a stronger voice she asked, "But the proposal will work well for all those record companies too, right?"

"Assuming you can sell albums and concert tickets like you always have, yeah. It'll work damn well for everybody."

Miley and Lilly turned so they were facing each other on the couch, and they were both bouncing with excitement. "You like the sound of it?" asked Miley, grinning.

"Oh yeah," said Lilly softly as she put her arms on Miley's shoulders, lacing her fingers together behind her best friend's neck. She leaned in and kissed Miley softly on the lips. "I like it," she whispered as she broke the kiss, leaving both of them tingling. "But it's your decision, Miles. I'll support anything you want, you know that."

Miley smiled as she reached up and ran her fingers through Lilly's hair, blonde strands spilling across her hand like spun gold. "I know, and I love you so much for that, Lilly Bear. Thanks."

"Welcome," Lilly answered with a matching warm smile.

Miley turned to look at Jen. "Tell 'em they've got themselves a superstar," she said confidently as she picked up Lilly's slightly chewed pen.

**Author's Afterword:** These long periods between updates aggravate me as much as they must aggravate all of you, and I'm sorry for them. I'm trying as best as I can to get stuff done a bit earlier, but this is as fast as I can work for now. Hopefully things will streamline themselves in the very near future. Next chapter will bring back a character from the past that might surprise some of you at first. However, when you look back I think you'll agree that this character's return (and what will most certainly come with it) was bound to happen sometime.

See you soon!

-- Jo --


	6. Chapter 6: Spellbound

**Author's Note:** Welcome back! Hope everyone is doing well, and I'm glad you're back for this next chapter. By the way, is anybody else loving the show _The United States of Tara_? One of the best television shows I've seen in years, no question about it. If you get Showtime, you owe it to yourself to check it out. Thanks to everyone for the kind reviews, and my apologies for being slow answering my e-mails. My girls went back to school last week after their spring break, and we've been rather busy for the past three weeks. I promise I'll do better with staying on top of my mail in the future. I hope.

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo P.

Chapter 6: Spellbound

_Living on a lighted stage_

_Approaches the unreal_

_For those who think and feel_

_In touch with some reality_

_Beyond the gilded cage_

_Cast in this unlikely role_

_Ill-equipped to act_

_With insufficient tact_

_One must put up barriers_

_To keep one's self intact_

_--_Rush_, _"Limelight"

"So, Hannah, anything you can share with us about tonight's concert? I mean, you're kicking off your new tour right here in Los Angeles tonight, right?" asked Mickey, one of the co-hosts of the _Mack and Mickey In the Morning_ television show.

This was the seventh time Miley had appeared on the early morning talk show as Hannah, and every time Mickey's on-camera smile had been so intense that Miley doubted anything short of massive head trauma could rattle it. Miley smiled her bright Hannah smile and unconsciously took Lilly's hand as she considered what to say. Lola was sitting right next to Hannah in another director's chair like the co-hosts used, her lavender wig contrasting nicely with her orange jacket, green shirt, zebra-patterned skirt, fishnet tights and black combat boots. "Well, Mickey," Miley said, "fans tonight will get a chance to see two different sides of me. The first part of the show will be mostly my older songs, and it's for all my fans. The second part of the show will be aimed more for my teenage and adult fans, and I'll mainly be performing my newer songs during it."

"Yes, tell us more about some of those songs!" gushed Mack, playing the role of dim talking head to perfection, although Miley wasn't sure that it was entirely an act. "I mean, most of them sound very different from what we're used to hearing from you!"

Miley flashed her superstar grin, even though today hadn't been the best morning. Since Miley had been pregnant, Lilly's periods had reverted to their natural chaotic state, leaving her at their mercy. From the amount of discomfort that Miley could sense in her best friend, today's cramps must be horribly painful. However, other than being a bit less chatty than usual for Lola, there was no outward sign of the internal war roiling inside Lilly. _She's learned to put on her game face,_ Miley thought, and for a moment she was bothered that Lilly had been forced to learn how to mask any troubles when she was in the spotlight's harsh glare. _But it had been Lilly's choice, and she'd happily made it a long time ago. I didn't force anything on her. _

Sensing that everyone was waiting for her to say something, Miley finally said, "Some of these songs I wrote two, maybe three years ago. But for several reasons the time was never right to release them." _Please don't ask about Dyseni. Please please please._

"Sounds like there was some tension behind the scenes with you and your former record company, Dyseni Records!" chirped Mickey, her smile belying the hornets' nest her words were dangerously close to upsetting.

"Yeah," said Miley softly as she quickly regrouped. She had talked to Lilly and Jen about this very subject and what to do if it came up this morning, and she was prepared. "You know, I spent many good years at Dyseni, and we were very good to each other for a long time. But after Mr. Bruton, the label manager who was like a granddaddy to me, after he retired things... Well, they just changed."

"You're referring to the contract talks from a few weeks ago?" asked Mack, no sign of his preening humor now.

Miley nodded her head. "Those talks were definitely the deciding factor in my leaving Dyseni, but I don't think it'd be right for me to be too critical of them. They had an idea of where they were going, and I wasn't part of it for some reason."

"Their mistake," Lilly added, trying hard to not vent some of the resentment she still held toward Hannah's former record company.

"Like I said, I don't think it'd be right for me to talk about all that at this point," Miley said, drawing strength from Lilly's support as well as her very presence. "What's done is in the past, and the opportunity that Dreamworld Music has given me is amazing."

"Yes, three smaller record labels merged to form your new company, right?" asked Mickey. Without waiting for an answer, she continued, "And they're taking a big risk on you being able to deliver like you always have in the past, it sounds like."

Miley nodded. "Only if you think betting on me is taking a risk," she said confidently, drawing knowing laughter and light applause from the studio audience, as well as a squeeze of her hand from Lilly.

_You tell them, Miles._ While Lilly's stomach was doing flip-flops inside her body and her uterus felt like it was trying to kick its way out of her pelvis, she held a smile on her face. Compared to the joy and happiness that came with Miley, pain didn't have a chance of keeping her down.

"And how about those rumors that you're already hitting up your friends to join you at Dreamworld?" asked Mack. "Kelly Clarkson, for instance?"

Miley grinned a guilty grin, but she managed to say, "Well, I'm not confirmin' or denyin' that one, Mack, but it would sure be nice to have some familiar faces join me, but _only_ if they're not happy with where they are. I'm not out to poach anybody's musicians."

"Now we understand that you have a new manager, too," said Mickey. "What happened to your father being your manager? Did he threaten to take away your allowance one time too many?" Mickey laughed wildly at her own joke, and she was instantly joined by her co-host; however, only a few people in the audience seemed to join in the laughter.

Miley stared at Mickey and Mack for a moment, then she somberly said, "I haven't gotten an allowance in a long time." Lilly fought hard not to laugh at Miley's quietly stinging rebuke, and she managed to keep it limited to only a light snicker. After a few awkward seconds, Miley continued, "Daddy's helpin' with some family business back home in Tennessee for a while, and anyway I think he's earned a vacation. He's done a great job of not only managing Lola and me for a long time but also writin' songs for me and, oh, _raising _me. I think he's earned some respect." Now the audience politely applauded for several seconds until Miley acknowledged them by nodding her head and waving them down. "But our new manager is amazing, too. She's doin' a great job with everything that we can throw at her."

Offstage Jen smiled. She trusted her clients to handle themselves, but being at things like this interview was part of her job. Just in case some of those surprises that life tended to throw at people when they least expected it reared their ugly heads.

As the show went to commercial, Mickey signaled for the sound technician to kill the microphones for a moment. As she stood and walked over to Miley, Miley and Lilly both stood to meet her on equal terms. But instead of some witty barb or lightly veiled threat, the older woman instead extended her right hand to Miley. "I didn't mean to upset you by making that joke about your father," she said, her voice oddly serious. "Being a single parent can be hard, and I know that as well as anyone. Sorry if I ticked you off."

Miley took her hand and lightly shook it. "Apology accepted."

"Good, because it's been a while since the last one I offered to anybody!" Mickey said, and now her smile was back. "I hope things are okay for your family back in Tennessee."

"Thanks. They're goin' okay now." Miley stretched, reaching up to the ceiling. As she did so, Lilly began massaging her back as best as she could with Miley standing.

"Your muscles are all knotted up, sweetheart," Lilly said, concern plainly evident in her voice. "Everything okay?"

Miley put her arms back down at her sides as she turned to look at her lovely wife. "Yeah, I think I'm just feelin' some of your hurt this mornin'."

"Aww," said Lilly. "I'm sorry, sweetie."

"Not your fault."

"Well, actually, it kinda is, since it took both of us for you to get pregnant," Lilly said, her quirky grin making an appearance.

Miley couldn't help but feel her heart melt again at the sight of that grin she had fallen in love with so many years ago. Half her life ago. She took Lilly's hands in her own. "Can we talk about your movie after this commercial, Lola?" she asked.

"Hannah, I'm not sure if I really feel like it this morning..." Lilly and Miley both looked at Mickey, and it only took a few seconds for them to wordlessly convey what the problem was for the young actress this morning.

"I'll go easy on you," Mickey said, patting Lilly's right and Miley's left hands, joined together as they stood. "Think of it as a freebie. Your movie opens in what, three or four weeks?"

"Three," Lilly replied. She took a deep breath, then blew it out. "Okay," she finally answered, putting a brave smile on her face again. "Thanks for understanding."

Mickey smiled her bright toothy smile. "No problem. Me, I had a hysterectomy and had my doctor put me on hormone replacement five years ago. No more PMS for me!"

"Not really an option for me," Lilly said softly. "We're not stopping with this little girl here," she added as she took one hand and lovingly rubbed Miley's belly. "And I'm carrying the next one." She hastily added, "In a couple of years."

"Yeah, I think we're both gonna have our share of sleepless nights to recover from after this little girl's born," Miley said, but the eagerness in her voice suggested that the two of them were actually looking forward to those sleepless nights. "How much time do we have before the commercial's over?"

Mickey turned to look at Miley and cheerfully said, "Fifteen seconds!"

"Sweet niblets," muttered Miley. "Could'a used a bathroom break."

"Suck it up, superstar," Lilly said as she hopped back up into her seat.

"Tell that to your child," Miley replied as she also took her seat, being careful not to flash the audience as she carefully crossed her legs in her bright pink skirt. "She's sittin' on my bladder."

As Miley and Lilly teased each other, Mickey faced the camera and said, "Welcome back! We're talking to Hannah and Lola Montana, both of whom have new projects coming very soon. Hannah's new album releases in two weeks, and Lola's new movie hits theaters in three weeks." She turned to Miley and asked, "So, Hannah, we wish you only the best for your new album, but somehow I don't think you need any help to make this one another big hit for you!"

"Thanks!" replied Miley. "I'm lookin' forward to tonight's concert, and I hope to see lots of happy fans there tonight!"

"And Lola," said Mickey as she turned to look at Lilly, "anything you can share about your new movie hitting theaters in a few weeks?"

Lilly smiled as she leaned a bit closer to Miley, who took her hand and tenderly held it again. "I think the movie will surprise most people that see it, Mickey," Lilly said. "Everyone involved in this movie put everything we had into making it, and if just half of that passion comes across, there are going to be lots of happy people in the theaters."

Mickey glanced down at a sheet of paper someone had surreptitiously handed to her, and a funny expression crossed her face. She looked back up, her eyes twinkling. "What's the story about you demanding a certain person to play your love interest in the movie?" asked Mickey.

Lilly blushed. It was now unusual for her to react so strongly during interviews like this one, but she honestly had not been expecting that particular question. "Well..." she started before trailing off.

"Come on, tell us how that casting came about!" said Mack, his smile once again in full force.

"I think it's sweet," said Mickey, turning to look at her co-host.

"I think it's a smart idea!" Mack added. "I mean, you hear all the time about these affairs that start while filming a movie, don't you? Somebody was planning ahead!"

Mickey turned to face the audience as Lilly buried her head in Miley's lap, drawing a few good-hearted laughs from the studio audience. "For those of you who don't know," Mickey said loudly, "on her first day on the set of the movie, Lola refused to shoot a love scene with the actor that had been hired to play her love interest. And it caused quite a stir between you and the director, right Lola?"

Lilly raised her head back up. Her blush was easing off, but it was still present to a small degree. "Only if you call us getting ready to fight on the conference table a stir," she replied, getting several laughs this time. "And they hadn't exactly hired anyone to play that role yet."

"And why did you refuse to shoot that scene?" continued Mickey.

Lilly took Miley's hand again, needing the support now. "Because I didn't feel comfortable doing some of the things written in the script with anybody except my wife," she said, her voice regaining some of its strength as she drew comfort from contact with Miley. "And I told them that. So they came up with the idea to have Hannah play my love interest in the movie."

Mickey grinned dazzlingly at the two young women, now leaning against each other. "And I take it you were okay with that?" she asked, deadpan.

"Duh," Lilly answered, grinning the grin of someone completely, hopelessly in love.

As the audience cheered, clapped and laughed, Lilly gazed into Miley's eyes. "Love you," she whispered to her best friend.

"Love you too, softie," Miley said with a wink. She turned back to Mickey and said, "Now, am I still gonna have enough time to do one of my new songs for everybody this mornin'?"

The audience whistled and cheered loudly, and it took a few seconds for Mickey to calm them down enough to loudly say, "Of course!"

Miley slid out of her chair, easily standing as she walked forward to the mark taped to the floor between where the four of them were sitting and the audience. As she stepped on the mark, she turned to Mack and Mickey and said, "Now this song's a big longer than mine normally run. Just wanted to warn everybody." She peered over to the side of the set. "Ya'll think you could turn the lights down a bit?" she asked loudly. As the lights dimmed slightly, Miley said, "Just a bit more." As the lights complied, she held up her hand and said, "That's perfect!" She turned to face the audience and said, "This song's called 'Fallen Angel.' Like I said, it's a bit different than most of my songs, but I'll explain why once you hear it."

As the music started, Lilly smiled happily. The cramping pains in her abdomen and pelvis were easing slightly, and she knew that watching her girlfriend perform would only make her feel better. Plus she _loved_ this new song. As Miley's unique voice began to weave its lyrical magic upon everyone listening, Lilly found herself shivering with emotion. Miley had this song written for Lilly as an early birthday present, and even after eleven years with her best friend Lilly still found herself amazed at what Miley could do for when she put her mind to it. _She gave me a song, a living work of art, for my birthday._ Lilly sighed softly as she gazed raptly at Miley, enjoying the sight of her beautiful wife performing for her audience. She had taken a chance with a song completely different from Hannah's usual catalog, just because she thought Lilly would like it. _And she was right; I love it. Plus we both know it's going to be a hit._

After nearly eight minutes, Miley finished the song, holding the last notes solidly to the very end. When the music stopped just seconds after the lyrics, the audience erupted in applause. Miley waved to the audience and took several short bows, mindful of her short skirt. She finally turned and walked the short distance back to her chair, stopping for an enthusiastic hug from Lilly before she could sit down.

"That was..." Lilly searched her mind for the right word, finally spitting out the words, "Beautiful, wonderful, powerful..." She smiled. "Spellbinding," she finally said, smiling at how good it felt to have just the right word pop into her head when she needed it. "You had all of us in your spell with your singing." She gave Miley a quick kiss on the lips, not lingering simply because they had no need to turn a kiss of thanks into an unnecessary public display of affection. Not when their entire lives were a public display of affection for each other, both in thought and in deed.

As Miley and Lilly took their seats again, Mack and Mickey looked stunned. "My goodness..." said Mickey, uncharacteristically at a loss for words. "That was like a fairy tale story, all wrapped up in that song! How long was it again?"

"Right at eight minutes," Miley said, unable to restrain her thrilled grin at how good it had felt to sing that song. She had practiced it for weeks, experimenting with different cadences, different moves, different expressions in an attempt to bring the song to life. Today was the first time she had performed it in front of an audience, and she was giddy at how good it had felt while she was singing it. "I love how it tells an entire story, from how the two of them met to how they fell in love and how they finally get to be together forever."

"Did you write that song?" asked Mack. "There's something about it that reminds me of another song, I just can't think of it right now."

"Heck no, I didn't write that song," Miley said, shaking her head. "The art and vision in those lyrics are so far beyond what I can do that it ain't funny. That song was written by a friend of ours named Jim Steinman, who wrote a lot of music with Meatloaf over the years. We sorta met through a friend of a friend a while back, and I asked him if he could write me a song as a early birthday gift for Lola."

"And this is that song?" asked Mack.

"Yup," Miley said proudly. "One heck of a love song, huh?" She was still thrilled with how good a job he had done with the song, capturing the concept of a young angel falling in love with a young human and being cast out of Heaven as punishment, only to eventually track down the girl of her dreams and fall in love with her all over again. Their joy was short-lived, however, as they both sacrificed themselves rescuing others from a burning building, dying in each other's arms but knowing they had saved many other lives. As a final reward they were reborn as angels, allowed to spend the rest of eternity together, loving each other as they continued to protect mortals on Earth. That final reward was exactly what Miley had wanted the song to convey to Lilly, how their love would endure even after their time on Earth had passed away. As expected, Lilly had loved the song, and she had immediately understood what Miley was trying to say through the elegant, expressive lyrics.

Lilly leaned in closer to the co-hosts, pressing lightly against her girlfriend as she proudly said, "That song blew my mind the first time I heard it. Hannah knows I love Meatloaf's music, and knowing that Jim Steinman wrote that song for me _still_ gives me goosebumps when I think about it!" She tilted her head to give Miley a loving gaze and softly said, "Lola likey," before she leaned her head against Miley's chest briefly, pausing just long enough for Miley to tenderly run her fingers through Lola's silky lavender hair, taking great care to not tug on the wig while doing so. Lilly then quickly sat back up, trying not to blush too much from the brief display of affection. "Sorry," she mumbled to Mickey, Mack and the audience. "I sort of get lost in how much I love her sometimes," she said nervously.

"I think it's sweet," Mickey quickly said, her energy evident in how fast she spoke. "How long have you two been married now?"

Without any pause, Miley and Lilly as one said, "Five years this month." They smiled at each other as several people in the audience chuckled.

"Well, you certainly sound like an old married couple!" said Mack loudly, drawing overt laughs from the audience.

Miley took Lilly's hand and kissed her knuckles softly. "Actually, we've been finishin' each other's sentences since long before we were married. We just understand each other."

A production assistant passed Mack a single sheet of paper, then he disappeared quickly as he scurried off the stage. Mack quickly read the paper, then he looked up and said, "Well, it looks we have a surprise guest who just arrived at the studio."

"Surprise guest?" asked Mickey as she turned to look at her co-host. "I didn't know we were having a surprise guest."

"Well, of course not, silly! It's a surprise!" joked Mack, but the humor seemed a touch forced to Miley and Lilly. "Hannah, joining us in the studio is who I've just been told will be assuming the top spot at Dyseni Records, the position you owned for over ten years. Everyone, let's give a warm welcome to..."

Miley and Lilly looked across the stage into the wings, the arrogant smirk on the bright red lips of the young woman standing there quite evident. Miley sighed. "Mikayla."

"Mikayla," muttered Lilly right after Miley, a note of irritation in her voice.

"MIKAYLA!" said Mack loudly, standing with Mickey as the Applause sign lit up. The audience politely stood and applauded as the tall dark-haired beauty walked across the stage. Wisely, someone set up a new chair beside Mack rather than try to seat the newcomer next to Lilly, putting Mack and Mickey between the three girls.

Truthfully, Miley and Lilly hadn't thought about Mikayla for nearly two years now. The pop starlet had never seemed to rise above the ranks of the second tier, and for the last four years little had been heard from Hannah's former rival. Over that same time Hannah's career had blossomed beautifully, and the happiness of their lives together left Miley and Lilly little time to think about a singer who had only briefly posed any real competition to Hannah Montana.

But today something was different about Mikayla. Maybe it was the confidence that came with a new record deal, or maybe she had spent her time away from the spotlight sharpening her singing or writing songs. Whatever was fueling her smugness today, it appeared that Mikayla was back on the music scene.

Behind them Miley and Lilly could hear Jen screaming at someone in the distance. "I wonder if she brought her old manager," whispered Lilly to her wife.

Miley considered the potential volatility of Mikayla's old overbearing manager Margot meeting Jen Kittrell. "I hope so," she whispered back to Lilly, causing both girls to snicker softly.

"So Mikayla," asked Mickey, her smile once again securely in place as she faced the newcomer, "what brought this surprise visit to our show today?"

"I heard that my record company's _former_ star was on the air this morning, so I figured I'd stop by and wish her luck on her new album." After a pause, she added, "Since she's going to need it, now that she doesn't have Dyseni backing her up anymore."

Confusion was evident on Miley's face as she asked with an exasperated voice, "What are you talking about?"

Mikayla smiled, a thin-lipped smile that didn't even pretend to be friendly. "Just that now you can't bully radio stations into playing your songs, or force cities into hosting your concerts that nobody with any morals cares about."

"Hair extension girl say what?" said Miley, her voice rising. "For the record, I never 'bullied' anybody into playing my music or hosting my concerts, and neither did anyone else, _including_ Dyseni Records. And there are still lots of Hannah's Fannahs out there who love and support not just me, but both of us."

"Exactly what I mean," Mikayla said with a smirk. "You're always throwing it in everyone's faces about how you two lesbians are all touchy-feely with each other, and it makes lots of us sick!"

"Jealous much?" said Lilly, her voice clear as it carried through the studio.

"NO!" Mikayla replied hastily, a little too quick in her reply. "I just think it's time that somebody knocked you off your little pedestal, Blondie."

There was a nervous pause for a few seconds before Miley said, "Mikayla, you stopped being a concern of mine years ago. Go on." Miley fixed her gaze squarely on the taller brunette. "Be a big star. Sell lots of records. Or flame out like you did before. We don't care either way. And you're not going to drag us down to your level by tryin' to jump us on live TV. We've got more class than that."

No one on the main stage noticed the red light wink out on the cameras, indicating that the show had gone to commercial. The show's director proved to be prescient, as just seconds after going to commercial, Mikayla yelled, "What the fuck is wrong with you two whores?!" She jumped to her feet and took two angry steps toward Lilly and Miley before Lilly was out of her chair and on her feet, Miley standing just seconds after her best friend.

It was rare these days to see Lilly Truscott angry. Life had treated her extremely well, giving her two parents who loved her, a brother who supported her, friends who cared for her and, above all else, life had given her Miley May Stewart Truscott. In turn, Miley was giving her a child, born of their immense love for each other. There was nothing on earth that Lilly wouldn't do to protect her wife and child; administering a sound thrashing to some smart-mouthed brat who talked to her gentle Miley like so much garbage and was now acting like she was about to get up in their faces would be a pleasure to the blonde who was still a tomboy at heart beneath her Lola disguise.

Mikayla came to a sudden halt as she saw Lola Montana step in between Hannah and Mikayla. She had always assumed that the overly silly neon-haired tramp was some spoiled friend of Hannah's who had wormed her way first into Hannah's bed and then into her bank account. But as she stared into the determined cobalt gaze of the young woman standing five feet away from her, Mikayla saw nothing soft whatsoever in that steely stare. She glanced down and saw Lola's manicured fingers curled into fists, the bright gold of fingernail polish on her thumbs standing in stark contrast to the very unladylike stance Lola had taken.

_She knows how to fight. And she's pissed. REALLY pissed. At me._ Suddenly this brilliant idea didn't seem quite so brilliant anymore.

"What's the matter?" Lilly asked, and now her smile wasn't forced. Getting a chance to stomp Mikayla into the ground had taken her mind off her cramps, plus it'd let her burn off some anger in a rather productive way by defending Miley. "If you think I'm letting you take a swing at my wife, you're as stupid as you act. Not that she needs me to protect her, 'cause she'd kick your butt on her own, but she's pregnant and doesn't need to be fighting right now." Lilly held Mikayla's stare until the taller woman relaxed and took a step back.

Security personnel stepped in between Mikayla and Lilly at that point. As Mikayla yelled, "You two are done in this town! _I'm_ gonna be the one all the girls will be looking up to!"

"You're off to a great start," Miley said acidly, turning her back on Mikayla as she kissed Lilly on the lips briefly. "Thanks for defending me."

Lilly smiled back and placed her hands on her girlfriend's hips. "Who's your knight in shining armor?" she asked, her face bright with happiness.

"You are, of course," Miley said softly, unable to restrain the grin that stretched across her face. She could feel that Lilly's cramps were fading, and both girls could tell their moods were lightening because of that. "You always have been, from the day we first met," Miley whispered, looking deeply into Lilly's warm eyes.

"Hannah, Lola, we are so sorry about that... person walking in here like that!" Mickey said as she pushed her way through the crowd of assorted personnel standing on the set now. She glanced over at her director, who made a motion with her hand. "We're back on the air in fifteen, but you two go ahead. We'll make it up to you, I promise!" She hurried back to her chair as everyone scurried off the stage, making it back just in time.

Miley and Lilly walked away from the set of the television show, hand in hand. The path through the building meandered through different areas of activity, but Miley and Lilly only noticed the warmth of each other's hand as they clasped them together tightly. When they finally reached the exit they heard a voice behind them, yelling, "Hannah! Lola!"

They turned around to see Jen Kittrell, their manager, running toward them. "Hey Jen," Miley said nonchalantly. "You catch the fun in there?"

"I didn't see any fun," Jen said, her face guarded. "Fun would have been Lola knocking the shit out of that little bitch. What I saw was one messed-up girl with a serious anger issue for you." Jen ran her hand through her short blonde hair and blew out a deep breath. "Look, you two go on home and relax. I'll give you a call in a bit once I take of what just happened here. Try to rest up or whatever it is you do before a concert, okay?"

Miley leaned forward and hugged Jen quickly. "Thanks for doing a great job taking care of us, Jen," she said as she patted her manager's back.

As soon as Miley released Jen, Lilly swooped in and gave her a hug as well. "Thanks, teammate," she said at a voice just above a whisper.

"Go on, rest up," Jen said, playfully pushing Lilly away before she had a chance to tear up at the simple, heartfelt statement of Lilly's. She turned around and made her way back to the set of the morning show. Rather than walk directly there, she took a more circuitous route to avoid the press of onlookers and crew clogging up the pathways. As she rounded one corner, she clearly heard what sounded like two women arguing.

"That was incredibly stupid!" said the first voice.

"I don't care!" hissed back the second voice. "This is supposed to be _my_ time, remember? Besides, you yourself are always saying that any press is good press!"

"Look, just because you've got lucky and have a big record company backing you now isn't a guarantee that your next album is going to be a big hit! If you want to take away her fans, you're going to have to do it by providing them with a more attractive option. Play up their being lesbians. Show yourself as a more traditional singer, one with cute but well-behaved boyfriends that will seem easier to tolerate for lots of parents. Hell, Mikayla, play up the religious angle! You're a Catholic, if not a very good one—"

"Watch it, Margot."

"Use that, dammit! The Catholic church is still officially against homosexuality, so use that to your advantage! We'll make sure to get some press coverage of you going to mass a few times; that'll play really well with families. Maybe find you a boyfriend to go with you."

There was a pause before the voice Jen now knew was Mikayla's said, "Seems a bit hypocritical of you, slamming them for being gay and playing up the religious angle."

There was a sound like shoes squeaking, with a sudden gasp before Jen heard, "Listen, you little bitch, that's none of your business! My job is to turn you from a second-string singer to a star again, and that's what I intend to do, whether you like it or not!" There was a pause, then a muffled noise that Jen couldn't identify at first. It was only after a few seconds that she recognized it as the sound of crying, muffled by something, probably a hand or hands. "Now do you think you can behave yourself for the rest of the day, or do I have to put somebody else watching your bratty ass today?"

Jen turned and silently walked away, taking the more crowded path back to the set this time. She stood at the periphery of the set, out of the range of the cameras or the audience as she stood concealed with the others in the shadows ringing the brightly-lit set. After a few moments she saw Mikayla stomping away from the set, her body language indicating her unhappiness. A few steps behind her was a heavyset older woman, glaring daggers at the back of the singer's head. Jen slipped away from the others and made her way along the perimeter of the shadows until she met the larger woman, away from any other observers. "Hi," Jen said, extending her hand for Margot to shake. "You're Mikayla's manager, right? Margot..."

Instantly the scowl that had previously been on the older woman's face was replaced by a friendly smile. "Margot Walters, yes, I'm Mikayla's manager. Have we met?"

Jen shook her head. "Not before now." She released Margot's hand and said, "I wanted to make sure and introduce myself. I'm Jen Kittrell, the manager for Hannah and Lola Montana." She locked gazes with Margot and continued, "Hannah's last manager was her father, who happens to be a very nice man. I, however, am none of the above." Jen leaned in, and despite the difference in their sizes, Margot shrunk back a step. "I suggest you keep your client away from mine, or you and I are going to have problems."

"Who do you think you are, talking—"

Jen's hand shot up, her index finger stopping just short of Margot's nose and stopping her rant before it had time to begin. "Who I am is a bigger bitch than you are, and I'll be more than happy to prove it to you any time you want. I'm not someone who's going to take the high road and prove that I'm better than you, like Hannah and Lola would do. I'm someone who's going tear you the fuck apart if you test me, and I don't care how I have to do it, whether it's in court or a parking lot somewhere. Stay. Away. From. My. Girls." Jen spun on her heels and walked away, not looking over her shoulder. In truth, she was hoping that Margot _would_ react angrily and come after her, but she was expecting the older woman to be more intelligent than that.

After a few seconds had passed and she had reached the director's office, Jen sighed. Margot was a predator, and a smart one at that. That much was clear already. And now it was Jen's job to protect her friends from that predator. She smiled. Being a manager for two celebrities was going to be more fun than she had thought.

Back at their house a few hours later, Miley lay stretched out on the couch as Lilly toweled her hair dry. "A hot shower after playing at the beach always feels sooo good," Lilly said happily. "You have a good nap?"

Miley sat up and turned to look at her best friend, who stood there in a powder blue bra and panties set as she rubbed the white towel over her hair. "Yeah, had a great nap," Miley said, her voice still heavy with sleep. "Dreamed of you. How could it be anything but great?"

Lilly walked over and leaned down to kiss her best friend. "You're so good," she said as she kissed Miley, one short kiss after another.

"One of the reasons you love me," whispered Miley between the kisses, which she had no intention of interrupting. She put her arms around Lilly's neck and lightly tugged down. Lilly slid across the back of the couch until she was resting on Miley's body comfortably. They continued to kiss as the intensity slowly built between them. "I want you," Miley said, hungrily sucking in a breath after a prolonged kiss.

Lilly smiled and sat up. She reached behind her back and undid the clasp on her bra, sliding it off her shoulders as Miley grinned and hooked her fingers inside the top of Lilly's panties. She planted a light kiss directly over where she wanted to be, relishing the taste of soft, clean cotton mixed with the smell of her girlfriend's excitement. Lilly closed her eyes and smiled as she leaned backward until she was resting against the arm of the couch. She lifted her butt off the cushions to let Miley tug her panties off in one smooth motion, then Lilly spread her legs for her lover, hooking her left one over the couch's back and stretching her right leg out along the floor. No sooner had she gotten her left leg over the back of the couch than she felt Miley's warm, wet tongue touch her. "Yes, Miley," Lilly purred as she threw her head back and ran her fingers through her best friend's thick hair, pulling her face even closer, her gentle tongue even deeper. "I love you..."

Miley gripped Lilly's legs tightly, giving her right one a squeeze that meant _I love you, too_, a signal they had agreed upon long ago. Miley had every intention of going slow, teasing Lilly along, but she couldn't control herself as she began to lose herself in the cascade of arousal washing across her senses: Lilly's taste, Lilly's scent, Lilly's moaning and whimpering, Lilly's slick wetness, Lilly's arching up, urging Miley to _go faster_, _go deeper_ until Lilly abruptly stiffened up and screamed. Not a simple cry like they both usually uttered when they reached orgasm, but a no-holds-barred scream that lasted long seconds and echoed through the house after Lilly collapsed back onto the couch.

Lilly found herself gasping for breath as she felt Miley climbing up her body. She looked up and saw Miley's grin, her face shiny with what Lilly knew was hers, marking the woman she loved. She gulped down two breaths before Miley kissed her intensely, the taste of Lilly's orgasm and Miley's mouth sending cold chills throughout the length of Lilly's body.

After several seconds of hungry kisses, Miley leaned back. "Wow," she said with a smile before Lilly suddenly sat up, shoving Miley backwards until she was now the one lying flat on the couch.

"No talk," Lilly said as she fell upon Miley, lifting up her shirt and bra in one fierce tug. "Sex," she growled as she sucked Miley's left breast, "not talk."

Miley squirmed underneath Lilly's spirited assault, tossing back and forth as she tried to pull her own panties off without dislodging her girlfriend's grip on her chest. "Need them... off..." she managed to get out as she lifted her hips off the couch. "Please..."

At hearing that word from her lover's lips, Lilly released her grip on Miley's right breast and gave her a look that set Miley's insides aflame with desire. Without words Lilly slid down Miley's stomach, pausing only to teasingly lick her belly button before yanking off Miley's lacy pink panties. She shoved Miley's legs apart and ran her tongue up and down her lover, making Miley cry out and jerk up into a sitting position.

Miley grabbed the back of Lilly's head with her right hand, holding her tight while Lilly made love to her best friend eagerly. Miley opened her mouth to speak but decided against it, instead reaching down with her left hand to move Lilly's hair to the side so she could watch her best friend bring her level of arousal higher and higher. As she could feel the breaking point hurtling toward her, Miley whispered, "I love you, Lil," before her entire body clenched and then explosively released. On some level of consciousness Miley knew she was screaming, but all she could hear was the sound of her blood rushing through her head, singing happily as Miley rode the warm wave of ecstasy. The world went black for a few seconds, leaving her with a feeling of tingling warmth throughout her body, but all too soon that feeling began to fade. As it did Miley became aware of Lilly's arms wrapped around her chest, holding her snugly as Miley shivered uncontrollably. As Miley blinked her eyes open, she saw Lilly watching her closely. Upon seeing her lover's eyes open, Lilly's face shifted from one of concern to one of joy, and she leaned down and kissed Miley wetly, sharing with her wife like Miley had shared with her.

As they broke the kiss, still staring into each other's eyes, Lilly whispered, "Holy cow, Miley, you tasted even more amazing today." She licked her lips as she saw Miley smile, still content lying in Lilly's embrace.

"Must be all the nervousness," Miley said as she shifted her body so that her legs were stretched out along the couch while she remained sitting up, leaning back in Lilly's arms. She looked back up and said, "Thank you for making love to me." She smiled and added, "Thank you for loving me."

Lilly kissed Miley's forehead. "You're welcome. And thank you for making love to me, and for loving me. And for making my eyeballs roll back in my head when I came that time."

Miley giggled. She loved Lilly's sense of humor, especially at moments like this one, a moment so pure and happy and right that she knew she'd remember it for the rest of her life. And maybe for longer after that. "You're welcome, lover," she said warmly as she reached up and flicked a lock of Lilly's blonde hair. "You kinda made me pass out, I came so hard."

Lilly wrinkled her nose slightly as she smiled down at Miley. "Yeah, I kinda noticed. Figured I'd hold you until you came back to me."

Miley shook her head. "I never went away, Lil," she said, her voice slightly huskier than usual. "When I leave here," she said as she tapped herself on the chest, "I go right... here," as she pressed her fingers against Lilly's chest, directly over her heart. "See? I never leave you, Lilly, not ever."

Lilly was surprised when she saw a tear splash against Miley's cheek. She hadn't realized she was crying until she saw a second tear strike her wife's face. "Sorry," she mumbled as she started to look away, but Miley's grip on her chin kept her from turning her head.

"Don't be sorry," Miley said. "I'm not."

Lilly smiled, tears and all, as she said, "Then I'm not sorry either."

"Good. Then stop crying."

Lilly laughed, then she kissed Miley again. "I think I'm more in love with you now than I ever have been, Mrs. Truscott."

Miley pulled Lilly down for another kiss as she said, "That makes two of us, Mrs. Truscott."

"Do you think the baby can feel it when we make love, Miles?"

Miley nodded. "I do. And I think she thinks it's like a roller coaster ride, all fun and exciting. And I _know_ that she can feel how happy we are when we make love."

The ring of the telephone brought the two of them out of their private world. "Dang it," Miley said as she reluctantly sat up, grabbing her head as the room spun momentarily. "Lil, can you get that, please?"

"Sure," Lilly said as she stood up and walked to the end table. "Hello?" she said as she picked up the phone. "Oh, hey Jen." She listened for a moment, then she eagerly said, "Oh, we just got through making love on the couch."

"Lilly!" hissed Miley.

"What?" Lilly replied, giving Miley a look of confusion. "She does kinda know that we have sex, goofy!"

"That's true," Miley said, more to herself than to Lilly. "Anything happen at the set after we left?"

Lilly held up one finger, signaling for Miley to wait just a moment. "Jen said that she heard Mikayla and Margot arguing about something after we left, and that Margot was chewing her out."

"Go figure," Miley mumbled, looking at the clock on the wall. They needed to leave in forty minutes to beat the traffic into Los Angeles. Fortunately, they had already picked out their outfits for tonight right after they had gotten home.

"Oh, Jen says that _Playboy_ upped their offer again. You're now up to seven million."

Miley grabbed a pillow and placed it under her head as she flopped back down on the couch, lying on her stomach as she faced Lilly. "How about for both of us?"

Lilly grinned as she repeated into the phone, "How about for both of us?" She sauntered back over to the couch and sat down in front of her best friend. "Wow, really?" She looked down at Miley, who had rolled over onto her back so she could look up at the woman she was completely, hopelessly in love with. "Twenty for us together."

"Sweet niblets," Miley said softly. She looked into Lilly's glistening blue eyes. "That's a lot of money for the Foundation, hon."

Lilly frowned as she looked at Miley. "Would _you_ like to tell your Mamaw that we're going to be in _Playboy_?"

Miley sighed. "No," she admitted. "I like being alive."

Lilly patted Miley's belly. "Smart girl," she said proudly. "That'll be another 'Thanks but no,' Jen. Nice of them to keep trying, though." Miley pointed to the clock on the wall; Lilly looked at it and got the point. "We probably need to get dressed for tonight, Jen. See you there!" Lilly hung up after Jen had said goodbye, placing the phone down on the coffee table. "Okay, Miles. Time for Hannah to rock."

As they stood, Lilly said, "Oh, I forgot to tell you! I had Jen add something to the concert rider."

Miley turned to look at Lilly. She took great care to not ask for ridiculous things in Hannah's concert riders, instead just asking for simple things like a comfortable couch, some bottled water, fresh fruit and assorted drinks for her band and crew. Some artists could get quite absurd in their demands before and after concerts, so Miley had always tried to exercise restraint in what she asked for. "What did you have her add, Lil?" Miley asked.

Lilly bit her lip, a sure sign that she was up to something mischievous. "I told her you wanted a ficus in the dressing room. And two beside the stage."

Miley's jaw dropped. "Lilly!" She stopped before she said anything else, because her wife was practically bouncing up and down with glee. "Wow, I can't believe I fell for that," she said to herself.

"I can," Lilly said as she walked back over to Miley and put her arms around her. "Because you're crazy for me."

"You're right," Miley said as they kissed briefly. "But if we get started kissing again, we're gonna be late for the concert, because we'll get stuck in traffic."

Lilly sighed. "You're right," she grumbled.

Miley leaned in and whispered in her best friend's ear, "But I plan on getting you all good and worked up tonight during the show, girlfriend, so you can take me back here and make love to me all night."

Lilly grinned. "You don't need to do anything for me to make love to you all night," she said as she took Miley's hand and walked upstairs with her wife, "but feel free to do that 'getting me all worked up' thing. That sounds like fun."

"Honey, you have no idea what's in store for you tonight," said Miley as they walked down the hall to their bedroom.

**Author's Afterword:** Wow, that chapter went a bit longer than I was planning, but I thought Miley and Lilly deserved some intimate time after that ordeal at the television station, didn't you? Before any of you ask, yes, Mikayla did briefly date Jake Ryan in the Lileyverse, and she did meet Miley and Lilly as themselves. But they never really had a chance to be friends, because she and Jake broke up shortly afterwards. More on that will surface as the story unfolds, I assure you. Next chapter brings us the kick-off concert for Hannah's new album, as well as more juicy drama (is there any other kind, really?). And congratulations to Miley for her Kids' Choice Award! We love you and wish only the best for you and Emily Osment in your careers! I'm pretty sure Miley and Lilly also wish only the best for you two, since it took you both to bring them to life.

See you at the next chapter!

-- Jo --


	7. Chapter 7: I Like It Loud

**Author's Note:** Thanks for coming back for the concert! I want to take just a few seconds to mention a movie that I just watched for the first time ever, and it's truly moving. So few movies can capture what love is about, with all its joy, pain, fire, comfort, confusion, fear, and all the other innumerable emotions that go with it, but this film from a few years ago called "Lost and Delirious" did it. Watching it made me smile, laugh, hold my breath, cry, rage, and finally long for that same love that Paulie felt. Whether we have happy endings or tragic ones, love changes all of us once we experience it. The characters in that movie are just screaming for me to take them and do _something_, so I might indeed do that before long. How in the name of all that's right Piper Perabo didn't get an Oscar or at least a nomination for her amazing performance in it, I'll never know. Maybe Canadian movies are considered foreign films and aren't eligible for the Academy Awards. Paulie and Tori, this chapter is dedicated to the two of you. May your love let you fly together in the face of all storms that come your way.

As always, thanks to all my readers for your sweet reviews and your patience. There have been so many nice questions and comments that I had to reply to each of them as I read them via email, so instead of recognizing them individually I'll instead just give you all a group hug! Now get reading, or you're going to be late for the concert!

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo P.

Chapter 7: I Like It Loud

_I turn it on, I crank it up_

_I'll show you all what I'm made of_

_I like it loud, I wear it out_

_I'll bring the roof and dishes down_

_I know just what you came here for_

_And I want to hear you screaming, "More"_

_Get on your feet, you know you can't resist_

_Let's do this_

_--_Hannah Montana_, _"Let's Do This"

As Lilly paced around backstage, she found herself more nervous than usual tonight. She normally didn't get butterflies in her stomach before Miley's concerts now, but tonight was most definitely an exception. She had seen Miley practice different parts of the concert over the last month, but tonight would be her first time seeing the whole thing. Time constraints had forced them to do only parts of the show during the dress rehearsal the day before, but this was a crew that had worked with Hannah for her last three tours; they knew their stuff, and both Lilly and Miley trusted them. Still, tonight's concert would have many, many eyes upon it, and it needed to go smoothly not only for Hannah Montana but also for her new record company, Dreamworld Music.

Lilly smiled as she thought about Miley's ideas that the two of them had worked out over the last few months. She personally thought Miley's ideas were excellent, but it remained to be seen if the crowd would like them. And some parts of the concert Miley had even kept secret from _her_, particularly the second half of the concert. However, judging from some of the outfits Lilly had seen back in Hannah's dressing room, the sex appeal of the later half of the show was going to shoot through the roof.

_No doubt about it. She's trying to give me a heart attack._ Lilly fanned herself. It wasn't particularly hot off to the side of the stage where she was standing, but thinking about the rather revealing outfits her wife might be wearing tonight was making Lilly sweat. Lilly smiled as she let her mind wander a bit. _Or maybe she's just wanting to get me worked up to make tonight extra special. _ Lilly smiled as she considered that possibility._ Works for me._

Helping her wife cool down after a concert had become something of a ritual for Lilly. When they were younger, before they were dating, Miley would be so energized after a concert that it would take her hours to fall asleep. Lilly would faithfully try to stay up with her best friend until Miley finally dozed off, but most of the time Lilly would succumb to slumber before Miley. What Lilly didn't know until some time later was that whenever she fell asleep while Miley was still wired from performing, Miley would wait until Lilly was solidly sleeping and then carefully lie down next to her friend, gently holding the young girl who had quickly become such an integral part of her life. While Lilly was safely asleep, Miley could look more closely at the girl she was falling in love with; she could run her fingers through Lilly's blonde hair, or trace the outline of her jaw with her fingertip, or very, very cautiously place a soft kiss on Lilly's forehead. Miley quickly found that once she was in contact with Lilly while her best friend was asleep, the nervous energy of the concert would rapidly bleed away and be replaced by a sense of comfort and peace. So it became something of a post-concert ritual, secret at first, for Miley to let Lilly fall asleep, then she would carefully move into position beside her best friend and hold her while she drifted into sleep with Lilly.

As time went by and the two became more comfortable and less guarded about each other's personal space—not that they ever were truly reluctant to be in close proximity—Miley's secret snuggling next to Lilly became not very secret at all. Soon the two of them would find themselves scooting next to each other any time they were sleeping in the same bed after a concert initially, then they found themselves doing it even on regular nights. They had never really discussed it; it had just become something that felt right, something that gave comfort to both of them, so they continued to fall asleep that way. And if an occasional arm or leg "accidentally" fell across one of them during the course of the night, neither of them seemed to be troubled by it.

_Back then all I could do was hope, pray and dream that those hugs and touches would become something more. But then all those hopes, dreams and prayers DID come true, and I truly became the luckiest girl in the world._ Lilly took another drink of her bottled water. The crew seemed to have everything ready to go; Miley's guitar for the first song was on stage right when it was supposed to be, the curtain was up, concealing the stage from the boisterous audience, and the last technicians were scrambling off the stage.

Lilly turned around, catching sight of Roxy. "Where's Hannah?" she asked the bodyguard, still with the two of them for official events even after nearly eleven years.

"She went back to change her shirt," Roxy said. She leaned in close to Lilly and said, "I think she's wantin' to make a good impression on you." The smile on the solidly built woman's face was evident as she leaned back.

Lilly's reply was forestalled by Miley walking out of the hallway, a big smile on her face. She had decided upon a bright yellow sleeveless shirt to start with, paired with a white miniskirt and pink leggings underneath. She was wearing her white short boots, fringe dangling off their sides as she walked over to her wife. "Hey, hot stuff," Miley said as she hugged Lilly.

"Hey yourself," Lilly answered, unable to keep the grin off her face. "You're gonna blow them away, sweetheart."

"I hope they like the new stuff," Miley said, and Lilly could see a flash of nervousness cross her best friend's face. "And I hope they like the two covers, too."

"Two covers? You only told me about one." Lilly squinted her eyes at her girlfriend. "Hannah..." she said, "_you_ are sneaky."

Miley grinned. "One for each half of the show, but they're both ones you like. Wish me luck?"

Lilly carefully ran her fingers through the long, straight blonde hair of Hannah's. "Thank you for going back to your hair this way," she said lovingly.

"I knew you didn't like the short, fluffy look too much, but I wanted to give it a shot." Miley smiled. "Thanks for putting up with my crazy ideas at times."

"Goes with being your woman... and your wife. The shorter look wasn't bad, it just wasn't—" Lilly looked into Miley's bright blue eyes, pupils dilated in the dim light, and said, "It just wasn't what I think of when I think of your hair."

Miley gave Lilly a soft kiss on the lips. "You just like the long, straight hair because it's what you fell in love with, Lola. Admit it."

Lilly rested her head on Miley's shoulder, taking in the feel of her lover's arms wrapped around her and the smell of Miley's orange shampoo, now a part of Hannah's wig after using this particular one for three years now. "I admit it," Lilly finally said after taking a long breath in and then slowly blowing it out. "It's how I'll always see your hair, Hannah." A thought struck Lilly then, making her lift her head up and look deep into Miley's eyes again. "When you think of me, what color hair do you see me in?"

Miley ran a finger across Lilly's lips, nearly giggling as she saw how her lover's mouth opened ever so slightly to let the tip of her finger slip inside, a natural reflex that showed how much Lilly both wanted and trusted her. After carefully thinking, Miley said, "All of them. I see you in all of your hair colors, like a rainbow. They're all beautiful to me, because they're all part of who you are."

Lily felt her eyes water at Miley's honest words. "No fair making me cry before the concert," she said teasingly as she wiped at her right eye.

"Hey, you asked, I answered," Miley replied, wiping Lilly's left eye for her. "Now give me one more kiss, for luck."

Lilly reached up and lightly gripped Miley's chin with her right hand. "You don't need luck, girlfriend. But I _will_ give you some inspiration." Lilly slid her hand behind Miley's head and pulled her slightly taller wife down, holding her tightly as she gave her a fiery kiss, pushing all the passion and desire she could into the woman she loved. Miley returned those feelings, and the kiss grew rapidly, approaching a boiling point before they both realized how worked up they were getting. They pulled back at once, each staring into the other's eyes with stark hunger in her gaze. "Rock the house, Hannah," Lola whispered. "Then you can rock _me_ at our house."

"Count on it," Hannah answered, giving her wife a dazzling smile as she turned and began walking to the stage, giving the signal to the effects technician to kill all the lights and start the show.

As the arena was suddenly plunged into blackness, there was a collective gasp, followed by even louder cheering and shouting. The black fabric curtain fell only seconds after the lights went out, but it remained so dark inside that no one could see it fall. Slowly the sound of keyboards became audible, faint at first but slowly building in intensity. In time with the gentle ambient sound, pink light began to shine on the back wall of the stage. At first all that could be seen was a soft rose limn at the bottom of the wall, but as the keyboards intensified the pink light brightened to match the music's tone, slowly painting the back wall in a pink hue that continued to grow in intensity. By design the lighting threw everyone and everything on the stage into a murky silhouette, but that did nothing to dampen the cheers of over twenty thousand fans.

As the first notes of a guitar began to ring out sharp and clear, the audience screamed as Hannah's fans watched both sides of the stage, each wanting to be the first to catch a glimpse of the superstar as she ran out onto the stage. Lilly recognized the song as U2's "Where the Streets Have No Name," but then she had also watched Miley singing the song during practice for the last two weeks. Seconds passed as the pink backlight continued to brighten, deepening the silhouette of the lone guitar player, and soon the guitar and keyboards were joined by bass, drums, and another guitar as they joined in while the music built in intensity.

From Lilly's vantage point off to the side of the stage, she could see Miley's back clearly lit with the pink glow as she expertly hit every guitar note that she had practiced for weeks. It had taken her nearly that long to finally be happy with this new guitar's sound, and that came only after she had angrily turned the delay up as far as it would go then used a pair of channel-lock pliers to twist the knob a bit farther. As the music approached the point where the arena lights would flare into life, illuminating the stage and revealing the surprise guitar player, Lilly found herself holding her breath in anticipation of the audience's reaction. Miley had insisted on playing guitar on this song, stating that it would provide a dramatic opening to the show; Lilly had playfully teased her repeatedly about getting the idea from the old documentary _U2: Rattle and Hum_, which they had watched during movie night with Luanne back in July. Rather than protest futilely, Miley had instead headed off the teasing by kissing Lilly, which Lilly certainly wasn't going to argue with.

As the lasers flashed and the house lights sprang to life, Lilly felt her heart swell as the crowd roared its approval of Hannah Montana playing guitar, hitting the notes like an expert. She watched her wife step forward to the microphone stand and start singing as she kept time on the guitar, and Lilly felt even more proud of the woman she loved. It was hard enough singing and dancing during a show, but singing and playing guitar was even more difficult. Miley was determined to do both when she could, but precious few Hannah songs lent themselves to that treatment. When she had a song she could play guitar on and sing, like their song "When I'm With You," Miley did so; otherwise she focused on singing and dancing like her fans expected Hannah Montana to do.

Lilly finally felt comfortable enough to take a sip of her water now that Miley was well into the opening song. The crowd was cheering wildly with no signs of slacking off, and that made Lilly smile broadly. "You surprised them again, Hannah," she said to herself. "And they love you for it... just like I do."

Once underway, the concert seemed to race by. Before Lilly realized it, Miley was hurrying off the stage for her first costume change. "You are totally kicking ass, sweetheart!" Lilly said gleefully as she followed Miley to her dressing room. She closed the door behind them and opened her mouth to tell her best friend how proud she was of her, but as soon as she turned around Lilly found herself grabbed by the shoulders and pressed against the wall by a fairly sweaty but no less beautiful rock star. Lilly felt her body melt into Miley's hungry kiss, and it was all she could do to hang on as Miley led her back over to the large couch in the dressing room. They fell onto it, Lilly on the bottom and holding on tightly as Miley continued to kiss her deeply. As flashes of light started to sparkle in the periphery of her vision, Lilly felt Miley release the kiss, allowing both young women to gulp down some sweet oxygen. "Wow," Lilly weakly mumbled as lights continued to flash in her vision. "Miss me much?" she asked playfully as she looked up into eyes of blue so deep that she could see the ocean in them.

"I missed you _that_ much," Miley said with a confident smile as she looked down at her loving wife. It amazed Miley at how someone as strong and competitive as Lilly could so effortlessly surrender all she had when it came to her. Even now Lilly had no problem letting Miley take the lead whenever she pleased, such as their kissing just then, simply because she trusted her best friend would never do anything that would hurt her. Miley hadn't deliberately intended to kiss Lilly until they were on the verge of blacking out, but Lilly had never so much as squirmed or hesitated; instead she had happily returned all the intensity and passion that Miley had given her in that devastating kiss. Miley felt her heart skipping a few beats as she considered how much Lilly loved and trusted her. "Is there anything you wouldn't give me?" she asked suddenly, staring intensely into her wife's shimmering blue eyes.

Lilly reached up and delicately moved a lock of silky blonde hair from in front of Miley's beautiful face, tucking it behind her right ear. "No," she answered with a smile both innocent and pure. "I'd give you anything."

Miley swallowed as she tried to grasp the entirety of what Lilly had just said. _Should anyone have that much power over another person? Only if that feeling was returned equally, with nothing but love in the heart. Like it is._ "You know that—"

"That you'd do the same for me?" Lilly finished for Miley, making her friend smile. "Yeah. I know." She raised her head up to give Miley another kiss, but this one was quick. "Now scoot. You've got to change outfits and get back out there before fifteen thousand teens and preteens rush the stage looking for you."

Miley stood as Lilly helped push her to her feet. "Just fifteen thousand? I thought the show sold out."

"I figured the parents would restrain themselves a bit longer," Lilly said with a smirk as she tossed Miley the top of her next outfit. "Maybe let their kids wear themselves out before they tried to pull them back." As Miley hurriedly pulled on the bright gold sequined shirt, Lilly handed her the black shorts she would wear with it. "How are you holding up, hon?" she asked curiously; she wasn't exactly worried about Miley and the baby, but she couldn't help but be curious as to how Miley's pregnant body was doing under the exertion of the concert.

"She's doin' great, girlfriend," Miley said as she sat down and tugged on her burnished gold satin boots. "And I'm doin' just fine, thanks to you gettin' me into shape over the last few years."

Lilly smiled. "I told you it'd help you when we got pregnant," she said smugly.

Miley stopped and gently pressed the tip of her index finger into Lilly's chest on her way out the dressing room door. "_WE_ are not pregnant," she said playfully. "_I'm_ the one who threw my guts up for five weeks."

Lilly dutifully followed Miley out of the dressing room, skipping along behind her best friend as they hurried back to the stage. She raised her voice so Miley could hear her over the cheers and cries of the crowd, saying, "Yes, but _I'm_ the one who held your hair out of the toilet every time you threw up, remember, dear? At the cost of throwing up myself once or twice, I might add."

Miley spun to face Lilly, an adorable grin on her face. She leaned in close and said, "I know, and I love you even more for every time you were there." She kissed Lilly on the lips, then she turned around and ran back out onto the stage; immediately the cheers doubled in intensity as she launched into "Nobody's Perfect."

Lilly stared at her lover as she instantly picked up the steps for "Nobody's Perfect," probably the most difficult choreography for any of Hannah's songs now. Despite being almost three months into her pregnancy, Miley nailed every move of the dance, and her strong voice didn't waver thanks to long months of physical conditioning. "You're amazing," Lilly said to herself, and deep inside her twenty-two year old body there was still a little girl who fell in love with Hannah Montana all over again every time Lilly watched her perform.

After nearly ninety minutes, the first half of the show finally came to an end. Hannah came back out for three encores, each time to cries as loud as they were at the beginning of the concert. When she came off the stage and the house lights went up for a twenty minute intermission, Miley was sweating but elated. "Oh my gosh, that was an _awesome_ crowd!" she gushed as Lilly handed her a towel and a bottle of Gatorade.

"C'mon," Lilly said as she led Miley to her dressing room. "You need to get off your feet for a few minutes and rest up. You still have another show to do tonight." As they closed the dressing room door behind them, Miley fell onto the soft couch, fanning herself with the towel. "I'll get you a washcloth so you can wash off a bit, Hannah," Lilly said as she walked to the private bathroom. "Don't want you all stinky when you go back out there for your fans."

"They can't smell me," Miley said teasingly. "I'm up on the stage!"

Lilly poked her head back out of the bathroom as the sound of running water became clear. "I can smell you," she said flatly. "And right now I want sexy, not sweaty."

"Sexy is sweaty in some cases," Miley replied, grinning as she waited on Lilly's retort. Instead she got a cold washcloth slapped onto her face without warning. "AH!" she yelled, surprised and a bit startled.

Lilly giggled as she watched her girlfriend jump up off the couch in front of her. "When you're all sweaty because we've been making love for two hours straight later tonight, then that'll be sexy. Right now, sweaty equals stinky. So un-sweaty yourself."

Miley grumbled as she washed her neck, back and armpits with the cool washcloth, but she did feel a bit better after washing off. She tossed the washcloth into the hamper in the corner, hitting it cleanly on the first shot. "YES!" she cried out, raising her arms over her head in victory.

Lilly sat down on the couch and patted the seat beside her. Miley smiled and sat next to her wife, lying down so she could rest her head in Lilly's lap. Lilly began to gently play with Miley's ear as they relaxed, letting Miley gather her strength for the final half of the show. After about ten minutes Miley finally got up and stretched, groaning happily as she did so.

"That's amazing, how much just having you hold me re-energizes me," Miley said. "But now I have to get ready for the more grown-up show, which means you need to step out for a minute." Miley winked as she gently pushed Lilly to the door.

"I don't get to watch you get dressed?" Lilly protested feebly as she walked to the door.

"Nope."

"Not fair!"

"You get to help me get undressed when the show's over. That work for you?"

After a moment's consideration, Lilly nodded. "That works."

Before Lilly could close the door, Miley grabbed her from behind and whispered in her ear. "When I get done with the show tonight, you are gonna be so hot for me that we'll be lucky to make it to the limo before you have your hands down my pants."

Lilly shuddered at the combination of Miley's sexy voice, warm breath and titillating words. She swallowed and walked out of the dressing room quickly, because she could feel the heat seeping down the back of her neck. _Dang it, now I have to wait another hour or so all worked up like this!_

As the lights went down to start the second half of the show, Lilly found herself eagerly awaiting Hannah's return to the stage. As she heard whistles and catcalls behind her, Lilly turned to see her wife wearing a strapless black evening dress, with the skirt ending about halfway down her thighs. A glittering belt covered with diamonds and a rainbow of colored precious stones provided the only accent to the ebony dress other than Hannah's blonde hair and healthy skin. "Wow!" said Lilly, taking in Hannah's look, which managed to be risqué, daring, sexy and still elegant all at once. "That's a beautiful dress, and the belt is out of this world!"

Miley proudly spun once, letting Lilly get a good look. "Glad you like it," she said. She leaned in close to her best friend and whispered, "The gemstones aren't real!"

Lilly smiled and whispered back, "I didn't think they would be. You're too smart with our money." As she and Miley shared a quick laugh, she said aloud, "It can be our little secret."

"Deal." Miley took a look out on the stage, then she said, "Gotta go!"

"Keep it rocking, Hannah!" yelled Lilly as the rock star ran back onto the stage to more applause. This time they weren't as many high-pitched shrieks of younger fans; instead the cheers were deeper and heartier, signifying the fans out there now were definitely not children.

Lilly found herself entranced by Hannah's new show. The more mature sound and look was completely different, but the fans continued to scream for more. Miley sang several of Hannah's new songs, including "Rock Your Body," "Nothing to Lose" and "The Tree in the Cemetery," along with a few of her older ones like "See You Again," "G.N.O." and "Start All Over." Lilly was particularly surprised that Miley chose to sing "The Tree in the Cemetery," because she had written that song during Christmas two years ago when they were back in Misty Hollow. It was an intensely personal song about Miley's mother and how they would talk to her when they visited the cemetery, but even with the emotion behind the song Miley sang it eloquently, standing in front of the microphone and stand with just a simple spotlight illuminating her as she sang the deeply moving words she wanted to tell her mother. Lilly found herself crying before Miley was halfway through the song, and she expected many of those in the audience were wiping tears as well before the song was over.

When that song was over, Lilly was waiting to give Miley a supportive hug as soon as she stepped off the stage. "That made me cry, sweetheart. It was perfect," she said as she held Miley long enough for her best friend to cry for a few seconds. Once those few seconds were over, Miley straightened up, her eyes slightly red and moist but her smile back in place.

"Thanks, Lola," Miley said as she looked deeply into those eyes that held nothing but love and support for her.

"Anytime, Hannah," Lilly answered as she saw the same reflected in Miley's own blue eyes. "Now go change. You just have a few songs left, I think."

"I have two songs left," Miley said cheerily. "The first one you're going to love, and the second one you're going to hate by the time it's over."

Lilly was so surprised by Miley's words that she was momentarily speechless. "Why am I going to hate it?" she finally asked as she followed Miley back to her dressing room.

Miley turned and said, "Because it'll be the only thing standin' between you, me and us makin' love, and by the time I'm done with it you'll be crawlin' the walls for me." She winked and closed the door to the dressing room, leaving a dumbstruck Lola in the hallway.

Lilly made her way back to the wing just off the stage, where the crowd was screaming for more Hannah. When Miley came back to the stage, Lilly felt her heart skip more than one beat as she saw how her wife was dressed. Miley's top was a shimmering sable halter top, coming less than halfway down her chest and leaving a tremendous amount of her firm abdomen bare. The light brown pants had an extremely low-cut waist, showing the crests of Miley's hips clearly and dipping dangerously low toward her pelvis. A silver body chain with a few scattered charms along its length was wrapped around Miley's waist, well above the top of her pants. The fabric of the pants clung to Miley's legs and butt tightly enough to let Lilly see that her girlfriend was either wearing a thong or wasn't wearing any underwear whatsoever, which made her even more turned on at that moment. As Lilly came to that realization, she felt her body heat up deep inside in a very natural response to how insanely hot her wife looked.

Lilly grabbed Miley's arm as she walked by. "I'm wet," she whispered before she kissed Miley deeply.

Miley grinned. "Told ya," she said with a smile before she grabbed Lilly's butt playfully. "Just think about how good it's gonna feel when you strip these pants off me," she breathed against Lilly's cheek before giving her another kiss. "And I'm wet too, lover," she whispered, then she turned and walked back onto the stage.

As Miley thanked the crowd for being so enthusiastic, Lilly found her eyes glued to her beautiful wife. _She's even more beautiful now. She doesn't look the least bit pregnant, except for that tiny bulge right above her belly button. And nobody but me could notice it at this point._ What brought her out of her daydream was the music that started playing as Miley said to the crowd, "This is an old song that Lola loves called 'Bat Out of Hell!' Let's hear it, Los Angeles! C'mon!"

"You totally rock," Lilly quietly said to Miley, although there was no way Miley could hear her over the distance between them, the music playing and the roar of the crowd. But still, just as Lilly said those words, Miley turned and gave her wife a smile and wave that convinced Lilly that she really _had_ felt and understood Lilly's feelings without needing to hear the words. And for the next seven minutes Hannah Montana belted out the song that launched Meatloaf's career with as much passion and power as she possibly could, making goosebumps rise and fall across Lilly's body in time with her strong voice. At the climactic point of the song where the protagonist fatally crashes a motorcycle, pyrotechnics around the platform Miley was standing on suddenly ignited in a brilliant flash as the platform quickly dropped below the rest of the stage, making it look like Hannah had disappeared. The effect was so quick and surprising that Lilly's breath caught in her throat; only when Miley began to sing again did Lilly allow herself to breathe once more. The platform slowly brought Miley back into view of the audience, all of whom had been just as surprised as Lilly. The metal platform continued to slowly rise until it was once more level with the stage, but as Miley began singing the last few lines of the song, she _herself_ began to rise off the ground, sending another jolt of surprise through Lilly's body.

Lilly strained until she could finally see the wires supporting the harness Miley had slipped on while she was out of sight of the audience. By now her wife was slowly flying over the stage, delivering the final lines of the song in a quite original fashion. The crowd was jumping up and down with excitement as Miley held the last note for long seconds, finally touching down onto the stage once more and kneeling as the music finished playing.

As Miley slipped out of the harness which quickly disappeared up into the rafters, the crowd applauded and cheered at her surprising performance. Miley picked up the microphone and walked to the front of the stage, taking the long walk out into the crowd along the elevated walkway protruding from the central stage. "Okay, everybody, you've been the best crowd _ever_, but I only have one more song to leave ya'll with tonight. I hope every one of you has had a great time tonight, because I know I've loved every second of it!" She turned and pointed to Lilly as she said, "But I've got the most beautiful wife in the world waitin' on me over there, and the rest of tonight is already promised to her." Miley blew Lilly a kiss as she said, "Lola, I love you, sweetheart. Thank you for supporting me and loving me like you do, girlfriend." She looked over her shoulder at the crowd once more and said, "This is an older song of mine called 'Let's Get Crazy,' so do it! Get crazy!"

As the music for "Let's Get Crazy" began to play, Miley began swaying her hips in a suggestive manner that made Lilly's mouth go dry. As she started to sing, Miley turned to look at her true love, pointing an outstretched arm at Lilly while she began to dance, grinding as if Lilly was standing on stage with her. While Miley still made sure to sing and perform mainly for her larger audience in front of the stage, she also cast several smoldering looks at her audience of one just off the stage. Miley's seductive dancing and sultry singing made Lilly's heart pound and her vision spin as Miley's voice washed over her like a hot shower on a cold winter morning. When Miley extended her arm and motioned for Lilly to join her on stage, Lilly numbly walked to the beautiful siren calling her forth, unable—and unwilling—to resist the call of the woman she loved. Miley was finishing the song, but she reached out and put her arm around Lilly's waist as soon as she was close enough to do so. As Miley sang the last words of the song, she held the last notes long seconds as Lilly grinned. This close Lilly could feel the energy radiating off her wife, could taste the love and lust coming from her Miley. She looked into Miley's eyes, pupils wide with adrenaline as the two young women leaned their foreheads against each other. The screams of the crowd slowly faded as the rest of the world seemed to fall away from them, leaving only the two of them.

"Hey," Lilly said, unable to control the quirky grin that was spreading across her face.

"Hey," Miley replied, trying to hold a straight face but failing miserably.

"I liked the show tonight." Somewhere in the distance Lilly was aware that people were cheering and whistling, but it seemed to be miles from where they stood, arms encircled around each other's waist.

"Yeah, it was pretty good." Miley could feel her self-control ebbing, and suddenly she became acutely aware of how much she wanted to make love to her wife. To make love to her best friend. To make love to the only lover her body and soul would ever know. "You ready to go home?" she asked, keeping her voice as calm as she possibly could.

Lilly nodded. "I'm ready to go home. To _our_ home."

"Then let's go."

Lilly hesitated momentarily. "Aren't you going to be signing autographs after the concert?"

Miley slowly shook her head. "Not tonight. I need you more than they need me."

"But—"

"Shhh," Miley said, gently touching Lilly's lips with her fingertip. "In just a few seconds they'll be announcing that I'll be at a CD signing next week for the new album's release. I'll do plenty of autographs there."

Lilly grinned. "Okay, that works." She turned with Miley and waved goodbye to the crowd, and now she could once again focus on the cheers of the audience.

"Thank you, L.A.!" Miley said into the microphone. "Hope you fun tonight, 'cause I had a blast! Be careful drivin' home, and I'll see you at my CD signin' next week!" She waved once more, then she and Lilly walked off the stage, hand in hand.

Four long, pleasurable hours later Miley ran a hand through her sweaty hair as she and Lilly lay entangled in their bed. Or what was left of it. Pillows and clothes were strewn across the room like the trail of a small tornado. One pillow actually remained _on_ the bed, firmly under Miley's head and resting on the bare mattress where they had tugged loose both the bottom sheet and down mattress pad with their heated amorous activities. Most of the top sheet was pooled on the floor beside the bed, but one strip of it clung stubbornly to the bed close to their feet. Their blanket was nowhere to be seen. _Maybe we threw it behind the dresser over there._ _Wait. It's out on the balcony. We took it out there a while ago, to make love beneath the moon and stars._ Miley smiled again. That had been exhilarating, feeling the cool ocean breeze against their hot, sweaty skin as they quietly made love, taking care not to wake up or disturb their neighbors. _I need to make sure I get it before I fall asleep, in case it rains. _

In fact, Miley was a bit surprised that she was still awake. She always fell asleep when Lilly did after they made love; they had done so for years now. _So why the heck am I... _Miley almost laughed as the simple answer hit her. "Can't sleep either?" she asked her wife, kissing the top of her head, blonde hair slightly pasted into place from her own sweating.

"Nah," said Lilly, her voice husky from the yelling she had been doing over the last few hours. "Too wired from tonight's concert still. Plus I'm enjoying just lying here with you."

"I know what you mean, girlfriend."

"It went really, really well, Miles. I mean, _really_ well. I heard the guy from _Rolling Stone_ say it was one of the best concerts he'd seen in years."

Miley thought for a minute before she finally spoke. "Is it wrong of me to want people to like my music and my concerts so badly?"

Lilly lifted her head to look into Miley's blue eyes, but they were fixed to the ceiling. "Hey," she said gently as she slid her body up Miley's, sucking in a reflexive breath as their breasts rubbed across each other. "It means you're human, and an artist. Of course you want people to like what you do, Miles, and they do. You've got a very special gift, and you need to share that gift with the rest of the world. You need to sing about love and friendship and growing up and about how you have to give everything you've got to achieve your goals in life. Girls today need to hear that. _People_ need to hear that. We need to be reminded that we're still alive, and that not everything in life sucks or causes us pain. There's still lots of good in us, too."

Miley kissed Lilly warmly, thrilling at the sensation of Lilly running her fingers through Miley's hair while they kissed. "We need to get the blanket before we fall asleep," Miley managed to say when they paused for breath.

"Not supposed to rain tonight," replied Lilly, who didn't seem willing to let Miley go for even a moment. "I want you to stay here with me, Miles."

"Lilly, honey, it's just over there at the balcony."

Lilly shook her head. "Uh uh. Not even for a second. You're mine for the rest of the night, and I say you keep your cute little rear parked right here in this bed with me." She looked up into Miley's curious eyes and said, "I'm not letting you go." She settled back down beside Miley, curling up against her lover's body and possessively throwing her left leg across Miley's waist.

Miley felt her body respond to Lilly's action, heating up again as she felt her wife's wetness press against her left hip. She turned her head and kissed the blonde she had sworn her life to a hundred times over. "I'll never let you go either, Lilly. I swear it." As she saw Lilly smile and close her eyes, Miley did the same.

"_Let me go!" squealed Lilly in a voice that sounded much younger that Miley was expecting. Before Miley knew what was going on, she found herself tossed to the side and promptly pinned by arms strong but careful in their grip on her. She couldn't see anything due to the mass of her thick hair piled on top of her face by the sudden movement, so she tossed her head from side to side, trying to move her hair enough to see Lilly. She knew it was her by the way her body tingled where those hands and fingers held her, even through the sleeves of the jacket she was wearing._

_The hands holding Miley's arms down suddenly released their grip, and Miley felt her hair being moved to the side. Staring down at her was the woman she loved, but her face was younger, much younger. "Lilly?" Miley asked, confused. "What..."_

_Judging from the expression on Lilly's face, she was just as surprised as Miley. "Miles, you're... like, fifteen!"_

"_So are you," Miley said, reaching up to trace the lines of her wife's face, just now beginning to show hints of the lovely woman Lilly would grow into. "You're still beautiful."_

"_So are you," Lilly said, leaning down to kiss Miley before helping her sit up. "Where are we?" she asked, looking around._

_There was a tang in the air that Miley recognized as that of impending snow. All around them were trees in various stages of shedding their leaves, and those leaves had been raked into a large pile beside the two of them. "This is my old climbing tree," Miley finally said. "Back at Mamaw's."_

"_Ohhhh," Lilly said as she also looked around. "I didn't recognize it because we always come out here when it's warmer." She smiled at Miley and said, "Looks like we'll be out here during fall some time, huh?"_

"_Yeah, but..." Miley scratched her head, removing a leaf from her hair as Lilly giggled. Miley couldn't help but smile as the sound of that high-pitched giggle. Lilly's voice had deepened slightly as they had grown up, but all it took was hearing that adolescent giggle again for it to sound as natural as breathing to Miley._

"_But what?" asked Lilly as she shifted onto her hands and knees like a playful puppy. "What's on your brain, Miles?"_

"_Why are we fifteen again?"_

_Lilly stared at Miley for a moment before saying, "It's a dream, Miley. We could be in space if the dream wanted us there."_

_Miley shook her head. "No, not a special dream. I know that's what this is, I can feel it." She pulled Lilly close to her, taking her hands in her own and forcing Lilly to sit up. Lilly responded to that by crawling into Miley's lap, leaning in so closely to her girlfriend that she could have licked her nose if she wanted to. _

"_LILLY!"_

"_What?"_

"_You licked my nose!"_

_Lilly grinned. "Yeah, so I did. Whatcha gonna do about it, Truscott?"_

_Hearing her married name made Miley pause before extracting revenge upon the girl she loved. She lifted her left hand so she could see her wedding ring, snug on her finger where it had always been. "Lilly, my wedding ring!"_

_Lilly turned Miley's hand over, inspecting the ring closely. "Yeah, that's what it is alright."_

"_Okay, be serious for a minute, Lil! We weren't married at fifteen, so why are we wearing our wedding rings?"_

_Lilly rolled her eyes. "Miles, like I told you, it's a dream—" _

"_A special dream! And our special dreams always show us the future, right?"_

_THAT made Lilly pause. "Yeah," she said after thinking carefully. "You're right, they do. They always seem to show us something good from our future."_

"_So why are we younger in this dream instead of older?"_

"_I don't know," admitted Lilly. "But we're together," she said, smiling that smile that always brightened Miley's day, "and as long as I'm with you, I'm happy."_

_Miley smiled and kissed Lilly again as her hands carefully felt their way along the lithe body hidden underneath the red jacket Lilly was wearing, the memories of exploring Lilly's body for the first time coming back to her in a rush that took her breath away. "I'm happy, too," she finally said. "And that's all that matters."_

"_So let's enjoy this dream while we have it," Lilly said, pausing for a second before she tackled Miley, driving both of them into the pile of leaves behind them. "And if you waste any more special dream time trying to figure this out, I swear I'll tickle you until you pee in your pants."_

_Miley just laughed and rolled Lilly over into what was left of the leaf pile._

As Lilly blinked her eyes open, she saw that the sun was just beginning to rise. Pink tendrils stretched across the blueish-gray sky, painting a picture of vivid beauty. Lilly admired the sky for several seconds before she found something even more beautiful to admire. She settled back down next to her wife, this time taking Miley's head and resting it on her chest. She moved Miley's hair so that it didn't conceal any of the brunette's beauty, and Lilly felt her heart swell again at how blessed the two of them were, to have each other.

Lilly could hear the ocean's dull roar, calling her out to play with it for a bit. The surfing would be wonderful, it seemed to tell her, and you could be back before she wakes up. Lilly smiled and looked out the window. _Not this morning, ocean. This morning I just want to roll over, wrap my arms around the woman I love and go back to sleep._

And she did just that.

**Author's Afterword:** Don't worry, Lilly has already gotten onto Miley about the need to avoid sudden drops while she's pregnant. She also let her have it over the flying over the stage part, too. I expect that Hannah won't be doing those tricks much longer. I hope everyone enjoyed the chapter, and one day that particular special dream will make sense—after you read the final story in this septology. However, that day is quite a ways off. Finishing this concert marks the first major checkpoint I have for this story, and there are many more checkpoints to come. Expect to see more of what Mikayla is up to in the next chapter, and we'll also have some special guests dropping by as well.

On a more serious note, take a moment and enjoy being alive. Appreciate something that you take for granted, and be grateful for having it. Life has no guarantees, so we have to have fun as we go. Oh, and if you're also a "Lost and Delirious" fan (or even if you were just moved by it like I was), I'll be posting a story picking up where the movie left off sometime. Right now I'm not sure if it'll be a oneshot or maybe two or three chapters. Anyway, when it's up come see my interpretation of the movie's ending and let me know what you think.

See you at the next chapter!

-- Jo --


	8. Chapter 8: Malibu Nights

**Author's Note:** Welcome to the next chapter! About a month has passed between the previous chapter and this one, and we're in the middle of December now. Miley's pregnancy is progressing nicely, and she's getting closer to the halfway point. Thanks to everyone for their great reviews, and I'm glad you're still liking the story. Time for the next chapter! Oh, and if you haven't seen Miley and Emily on Tyra Banks' show, you need to check it out if you want a visual on how cute Miley and Lilly are together. The last part of the interview is the best, with the two of them sitting quite a bit closer than anyone else on the show. I mean, _quite_ a bit closer. Thanks to all of you who pointed that little clip out to me!

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo P.

Chapter 8: Malibu Nights

_Into the spotlight we will go_

_Follow me, 'cause baby life's a show_

_Into the spotlight you will see_

_It's the only place to be_

_Into the spotlight you will see_

_It's the only place for me_

_--_Hannah Montana;"Spotlight"

As Lilly Truscott chewed the surprisingly tasty end of her pencil, her thoughts continued to wander. This was her next-to-last final exam before Christmas break, and she was already looking forward to having some time off with her family. She smiled as she looked out the window and pondered what that simple word meant for her now.

_For most of my life, my family was my parents, my brother and me. It was only after I met Miley that I began to think of someone else as part of my family. But it didn't take long before we were thinking of each other that way, as family. And then we found ourselves thinking of each other as more than just friends or sisters, we just hadn't told each other at that point. Then my family became Miley and me, as a couple, which rocked. Now it's Miley, me, and our baby, and I _still_ get the giggles thinking about that sometimes._

Lilly forced her thoughts back to her test, only to catch a glimpse of a stunning brunette in a floral sundress outside, sitting carefully on a brick wall under the shade of a maple tree as she read a magazine. As Lilly smiled, she saw Miley look up and give her a quick wave, then blow her a kiss. Lilly grinned and made herself turn to look back at the exam on her desk, but that simple look they shared was enough to life Lilly's spirits into the happy zone. As she wrote her answer in the blank and moved on to the next problem, she felt a warmth begin in her chest, and she smiled and closed her eyes as the comforting sensation began to spread throughout her body. Lilly concentrated, taking the joy she felt from Miley's loving feelings and sending it back to her wife outside.

Miley closed her magazine and sent it down beside her on the bricks, covering it with her backpack so the wind wouldn't blow it away. She shivered slightly as she felt the familiar warmth of Lilly's love begin to tingle in her chest. There was something just a bit extra in the warmth as Miley focused on it, closing her eyes in concentration. _Amusement?_ No, that felt just a bit different. _Ah. Thanks._ That was it. Lilly was thanking her for the support of just being there for her. Miley opened her eyes and blew another kiss toward the window as she tried to send Lilly more confidence and support as she took her test.

"Flirt much?" asked a young man as he sat down on the bricks beside Miley, an amused smile on his face.

Miley turned to regard the interloper, but the love she could feel from Lilly made her so happy that she couldn't exactly get irritated at his overly friendly manner. "Just with people I love," she replied, unable to suppress the smile on her face. Instead she pulled her magazine out from under her backpack and began flipping through the pages, looking for the article she had started reading.

"Sounds hot," the young man said, turning to face Miley a bit more directly. "My name's—"

"Not interested," Miley said quickly.

Undeterred, he tried again. "No," he said with a laugh that might have been charming to another woman, "it's Kevin, actually."

Miley turned to look at him through her sunglasses. She smiled sweetly as she said, "Hi, Kevin. Like I said before, _not interested_."

"But you don't even know me," he protested mildly.

As he began his determined attempt to be witty and charming, Miley felt a warmth similar to before, only this time it was accompanied by a light-hearted sensation that told her Lilly was not only watching but also quite amused at the poor boy's attempt to pick up her unattainable wife. Miley sent the same feeling of amusement back to Lilly mixed with a hint of reassurance as she continued to read her magazine, deciding to let clueless Kevin expend his energy on an ill-fated pickup attempt before she lowered the boom on him.

After several minutes of him trying to talk her into a date with him, Miley decided that she might as well have a bit of fun herself. She closed the magazine with a quick snap and turned to fix him with a steady glare through her sunglasses. "Look, I tried to save you some time and trouble, but you wouldn't listen," she said. "So let me give you a few reasons why you need to go find some other girl to try your act on." Holding up her left hand so he could see her wedding ring and engagement ring, she said, "First, I said no. Second, I'm married, and I don't fool around. Third, you're absolutely not my type. Fourth—"

"She has a can of pepper spray that's probably in her hand now, and she'll sure as heck fill your face full of it."

Miley turned to look behind her, grinning as she saw her Lilly. "Hey sweetheart!" she said, sliding off the short brick wall to hug her wife. As she did so, the thin sundress fell against her slim body, revealing a belly just starting to show the young life growing inside.

Lilly gave Miley a kiss as she wrapped one arm around her wife and rubbed Miley's belly gently with the other hand. "How's our little jellybean?" she asked cheerily as they finished their kiss.

"She's been good today," Miley said with a grin. "A little bit of heartburn, but that mighta been from the hot dogs last night."

"All four of them?" asked Lilly with a smirk.

"We were hungry," grumbled Miley. "Sorry, I'm not used to eatin' as much as you do."

Lilly gave Miley a one-armed hug. "It's okay, I still love you, Miles." She turned to regard the boy who had been talking to Miley. "Still want to hit on the pregnant married lesbian girl now that her very jealous and protective wife is standing next to her?" Lilly asked him, shifting her demeanor from pleasant to frosty as she spoke.

The look on Kevin's face was fluttering between confused and apprehensive as he stammered out, "Uh, I, uh, have a, um, a class..."

"Hurry so you won't be late," Lilly offered pleasantly, adding, "Bye!" as he took off for the nearest building.

As Kevin hurried off, Miley sputtered with laughter, with Lilly joining her as they stood holding each other under the maple tree's shade. "That was just about the funniest thing I've seen all day," Miley said as she leaned her head against Lilly's. "You do good on your test?"

Lilly nodded. "I was having a bit of trouble concentrating until I felt you out there. Once I saw you, that sort of motivated me to buckle down and get finished. I am _so_ glad I'll never have to take that class again."

Miley turned around and shifted her arms to take Lilly's hand in her own as they began walking to their car. Her hand drifted to her stomach idly. "You still gonna love me when my belly's out to here?" she asked, holding her right hand a foot in front of her stomach.

Lilly leaned against Miley's shoulder as they walked at a leisurely pace. "Of course. And I'll love you when you're in labor and ready to punch my lights out for making you go through something so painful, and I'll love you when we're taking turns getting up at night to feed our little girl." Lilly smiled as she stopped, bringing Miley to a stop with her. When Miley stopped Lilly reached up and slipped the backpack off Miley's left shoulder, holding it as Miley turned to let it slide off her right shoulder as well.

"Thank you, hon," Miley said as Lilly slung her wife's backpack over her right shoulder next to her own. "My back's a little sore this morning."

As they held hands and resumed their walk, Lilly said, "Because you were a wild woman last night, sweetheart. Haven't had you work me like that in, oh..."

"A whole week?" Miley volunteered with a leering grin. "I know, my sex drive is really cranking up. I hope it's not driving you crazy."

Lilly felt her face flush slightly at talking about subjects like their love life in the wide open, but no one was paying any attention to them walking; the hustle of students passing them coming and going was too hurried for anyone to focus on their conversation. Lilly and Miley were walking at the speed of confident seniors in no hurry to arrive at their destination, and the students rushing to their next class simply had to flow around them.

Lilly said, "Miles, I could never get too much of making love to you."

"Even when we're old and gray and our arthritis is flarin' up?" Miley asked with a sneaky grin.

Lilly sighed and pulled her wife closer. "Even then, Miley Truscott. If I can pull myself out of my rocking chair, that is."

The two of them laughed as they finished the rest of their walk in silence, each enjoying being next to her best friend and the haven from the rest of the world that true friend provided. Growing older was a subject that they didn't talk about too often, but it had come up from time to time, usually when they were lying on the couch watching a movie or television show featuring an older couple. Or, even more uncomfortable, a commercial for an erectile dysfunction product. Miley had confided in Lilly that when she was older she might not feel as comfortable making love, simply because her body wouldn't look as good as it currently did. Lilly's response had surprised her slightly.

_Lilly turned where she lay on top of Miley and looked into her wife's sapphire eyes. "Miley, our bodies are going to change. There's nothing we can do about that. And honestly, I do love your body. I think you're amazingly beautiful. But who I fell in love with is inside that body, and no matter what that body looks like or what happens to it, my wife—my partner—is going to be inside it, until the day we die. And then what that body looks like or feels like won't matter anymore, because we'll be free." Without looking she found Miley's right hand with her left, lacing their fingers together. "And you know what?"_

_Miley was fighting tears as she croaked out, "What?"_

_Lilly's bright blue eyes were similarly wet as she finished, "We'll be together. And then we'll never have to be apart for anything."_

_Miley sniffled as she used her left hand to wipe the gathering tears from her eyes. "You might get tired of me after a thousand years."_

_Lilly shook her head. "Nah. I signed up for forever, remember? I think I can handle you for a lot longer than a silly thousand years."_

Ever since then growing older had ceased to be a concern for either of them. When they reached the point that they would no longer be as comfortable making love, there would still be endless love between the two of them and plenty of other ways to express it. Life was about change, and living was about adapting to it. But loving was about accepting someone regardless of that change, and that was what Miley and Lilly would do.

As they climbed into their inky black Roadster, Lilly tossed their backpacks into the floorboard before Miley climbed into the passenger side. The only problem with their two Roadsters was that there was no room for anyone besides the two of them, and they had already been looking at slightly larger vehicles in preparation for the growth of their little family.

"So we still going to Traci's party tonight?" asked Lilly as she drove them to their house.

Miley grimaced. Her socialite friend Traci had quietly distanced herself from Hannah and Lola over the past few years, but last week they had received an invitation to a party of hers happening later tonight. Neither of them was entirely sure what it was all about, but they also hated not to go if a friend, even a distant one, needed them. "I guess," said Miley, the lack of enthusiasm in her voice striking.

Lilly felt a bit glum at bringing their mood down. "Hey," she said happily, "what time are the girls getting in tomorrow?"

Now Miley smiled again. Her "nieces" Peyton and Melody Burns, now fourteen and thirteen following Melody's birthday last week, were flying into Los Angeles tomorrow to spend nearly two weeks with Miley and Lilly before the four of them flew back to Misty Hollow for Christmas. She and Lilly hadn't seen them since July, but they stayed in touch via cell phones and text messages. "I think maybe around four or five," Miley said. "I'll call Daddy tonight and make sure."

"I couldn't believe how much they had grown last time we saw them," Lilly said, shaking her head. "They're both beautiful, too. I bet their mom and dad are going nuts by now from the phone ringing off the hook for them."

"I bet you're right." Miley patted Lilly's right thigh, letting her fingers and hand warmly linger on her best friend's leg. "You excited about your movie opening this weekend?"

It was still almost like a dream for when Lilly when it came to her new movie, "Above and Beyond." The movie was opening in limited cities this weekend, with the main premiere in Los Angeles just a few days away. "I'm looking forward to it, but I'm also scared to death, Miles. I mean, what if everyone hates it? What if everyone hates _me_ in it?"

Miley squeezed Lilly's thigh. "Sweetheart, you did an amazing job. Trust me. I think this movie is gonna open a lot of eyes about just how good an actress you really are."

"I sure hope so, Miley. But I'm already so nervous that—"

"Lilly. I'm going to be there with you, remember?" Miley couldn't help but be proud of her best friend. Maybe it was time for Lola to get all the recognition that Miley knew she deserved. And it was important that this recognition come for Lola specifically. That was why it had been agreed for Hannah's cameo appearance in the movie to remain a secret, not to be revealed until the movie was in theaters. The movie was Lola's, and there would be no mistake made there. Hannah had been there long enough to establish the romance between her doomed character and Lola's young veteran as true and heartfelt, and then she was gone. Lola had to carry the rest of the film, along with the two young co-stars who played her stepchildren, and the three of them had done a spectacular job.

"Thanks, Miles. For being there for me," Lilly said after a long pause. She scooped up Miley's hand and held it. "I guess this looks so dumb, being nervous like this."

"It doesn't look dumb at all," Miley reassured Lilly. "It shows that you care about your work as an artist. At least, that's what someone really smart told me once."

Lilly grinned. "Someone really smart, huh?" she asked.

Miley nodded. "Uh huh. Really cute, too."

They drove for a bit longer before Lilly spoke again as they turned onto their street. "So what are we going to do with Peyton and Mel when we go to the movie premiere?" she asked.

"I'd been thinkin' about that," said Miley quietly. "I was plannin' on callin' Lu tonight and seein' if she could take them somewhere or watch them here while we went to the premiere."

"That might work," Lilly said as she parked the car in their carport. "How is she doing? I hadn't talked to her in a few days."

Miley unlocked and opened the kitchen door for Lilly as they reached it. "She's not feelin' too good," Miley said. "She's really missing Ron."

"Maybe we should invite her over tonight. Skip the party and take care of your sister."

"I already offered," said Miley with a soft smile. "But she insisted we go to the party. She said she'd come over later tonight when we got back."

"Okay, that works!"

A few hours later Hannah and Lola Montana found themselves at a nightclub called Envision, which had been rented for the night by the heiress Traci Van Horn. Neither Miley nor Lilly was entirely sure of the occasion that was being celebrated, but they were quite confident that they could deal with the paparazzi and sycophants that seemed to buzz around the wealthy Traci like moths around a flame.

As they stepped out of Hannah's electric blue Roadster, Miley and Lilly were immediately engulfed in a tidal wave of camera flashes, followed by a shockwave of paparazzi yelling their names, each trying to get the best picture possible. As Miley pointed out the "Off" button to the valet, Lilly patiently waited beside her wife, ignoring the calls for her to turn around or look in a particular direction. When Miley was done, Lilly took her hand and the two of them walked slowly to the club entrance, taking their time so everyone could get a good picture of the two of them. They tried to have a relatively friendly relationship with the paparazzi, letting everyone get good pictures of them in exchange for civil behavior on the part of the photographers. Strangely enough, the unspoken agreement had worked for several years now, with both sides happy at its results.

As the two of them made it into the nightclub, they were momentarily lost in the press of the crowd. Lilly stepped back and let Miley take the lead without any hesitation, as this was still her wife's element; however, Lilly did take the hand that Miley extended behind her, holding on tightly to make sure they didn't get separated. That ceased to be a concern a few seconds later, when the whispering buzz made it far enough ahead of them to alert the club to their presence. When that critical point was reached, the crowd ahead of them seemed to part to allow them to proceed unimpeded. Miley smiled as they were given enough room for Lilly to move back up beside her, and with just a slight tug on her girlfriend's hand Miley communicated her unspoken request.

Lilly smiled as she felt Miley tug on her hand oh-so-slightly. She stepped forward and switched hands, giving Miley her left one now that they were able to stand side-by-side. "Thanks," Lilly said, having to raise her voice slightly to be heard over the music, loud but not overwhelming.

"Welcome," Miley replied similarly. "This is where you belong, you know?"

"What?" Lilly asked, unable to hear clearly just then.

Miley raised her voice a bit more and leaned in closer as she said, "I said, this is where you belong. Beside me, not behind me."

Lilly grinned. She leaned into Miley and said, "Sometimes behind you works pretty good for both of us."

Miley blushed right at the time a photographer snapped a picture of the two of them talking to each other, causing Lilly to laugh briefly. "I bet that one'll look good on the cover of some magazine," Miley grumbled to her wife as they again began moving forward, searching for their host.

"I think you look cuter than a box of puppies when you've got that little blush thing going," Lilly said. "I'll buy extra copies of whatever magazine puts that picture on the cover."

Miley gave Lilly a slightly reprimanding look out of the corner of her eyes. "Don't encourage them, Lola," she said with a straight face.

"Hey, there's Traci," said Lilly, pointing forward with her free right hand. Miley slightly lowered her shoulder and they made their way through the mix of people dancing, drinking, flirting and making out. As they reached their target, they both smiled. "Hey Traci," said Miley pleasantly.

"Hannah, darling!" Traci said in her usual nasal voice as she beamed at her friends. "And Lola, dear. _So_ good to see you both. You've certainly livened up my party just by being here."

Lilly wasn't exactly best friends with Traci. In fact, if it weren't for Traci being Hannah's friend, Lilly wouldn't have associated with her at all. There were too many differences for them to ever be entirely comfortable with each other, but she was a friend of Miley's. That meant Lilly also considered her a friend, albeit begrudgingly.

Lilly had often wondered exactly what had prompted Miley to continue the friendship with Traci, as they had grown increasingly farther apart over the years. Miley had fallen in love, matured, gotten married and begun a new focus on the future; Traci, on the other hand, continued to live the same shallow life of parties, dates, publicity and gossip. Despite those differences, Miley still attempted to hang onto part of that friendship, and Lilly suspected it was because she had felt the same harsh glare, loss of privacy and constant demands that came with being in the spotlight. But the big difference was that Miley disliked that part of her fame, going so far as to use Hannah to shield their personal life from the intrusive eye of the public. In contrast, Traci _loved_ the attention. She went out of her way to use that publicity to keep herself in magazines and gossip blogs all the time, and that gave her something to do.

_I couldn't handle a life like that_, Lilly though, shivering as she did so. But then she reconsidered. _I could do it... for Miley. If something ever happened to reveal who we really were. I could keep it together for her. For us._ Now Lilly smiled. "For our family," she whispered out loud.

"You say somethin'?" asked Miley, her eyes questioning as they danced over Lilly's face.

"Just thinking. About all this craziness." She saw the comforting look in Miley's eyes, and Lilly knew beyond any doubt that she would never have to face any challenge in life alone. Neither of them would. Strengthened once again, she turned to look at Traci. "Nice party, Traci! What's the occasion?"

"It's my doggy's birthday," said Traci, gesturing toward the bar area where either a small dog or a large hairless rat was resting on a purple pillow, being petted by two attendants.

Lilly nodded, not understanding how Traci's mind worked at all. If it worked. "Well, uh, happy birthday to your dog, then," she said. "Was there something you were wanting to talk to us about?"

Miley put her arm around Lilly as she spoke. "We sort of had some plans already made for this evening, so we can't stay too long. Sorry."

Traci's smile didn't waver in the slightest. "I forgive you, dears. There _is_ only so much attention any of us can tolerate, after all. And TumTums gets sleepy at nine anyway." She held her glass out to Lilly. "Lola, darling, would you mind to fetch me another glass of champagne?"

Lilly had only been annoyed before this point, but when she realized Traci was asking her to wait on her, she began to seethe inside. Miley looked at her best friend, regret in her eyes. She turned to Traci and said, "You know, Traci, Lola isn't part of the help here. She's my _wife_. I think if you asked her nicely, she might be willing to do that for you, but she sure as heck isn't gonna fetch you a drink just because you expect her too."

Traci's expression was blank as she stared at Miley. Then she giggled once, and Lilly wondered how much she had already had to drink before they had arrived. "Hannah, darling, the two of you are _so_ much fun! It's _so_ adorable how you protect each other." She turned to look at Lilly, her eyes just a touch slow to focus. "Lola, darling, would you please refill my glass for me? If you don't mind?"

Lilly forced herself to smile. She caught Miley's eye and then she realized what was going on. _Traci's got something she's wanting to tell her in secret. Okay, I can play along._ "Sure," she said. "You want something, hon?" she asked Miley.

"Just for you to hurry back," Miley replied.

Lilly kissed Miley's cheek. "You'll survive." She slipped into the crowd, holding the glass in front of her as if it might attempt to bite her. As she reached the bar, she picked the end farther away from where TumTums was holding court. She stepped up to the bar and set the empty glass down.

"What are you drinking?" asked the bartender, tall and lean with a surprisingly boyish face.

"Actually, I just want a Sprite in a small glass. And I guess some champagne in this one," she said, pointing to the tall glass in front of her. "And water it down, please." The bartender gave her a funny look, but he dutifully complied. He set the Sprite down first; Lilly quickly grabbed it as he took the champagne flute. She took a drink, then almost spit it out. "Yuck! This is flat!" she said, getting his attention before he could walk away. "I think you need to change it out."

"Sorry about that," he said giving her a friendly smile. "Let me get this champagne for you, then I'll get you a real Sprite."

"No, wait," Lilly said as a thought sprang to mind. "Instead of champagne, how about you just fill that glass with this stuff before you change the tank out?" She held up the glass of flat watery Sprite and swirled it around once, smiling as she did so. "I think my friend's had enough champagne for tonight."

By the time Lilly made it back over to Miley and Traci, it looked like they had finished talking. "You sure you're okay, Traci?" asked Miley.

Lilly leaned in and whispered in Miley's ear, "She'll be fine. I already told one of her little poochie's escorts that it was time for her to head home." She handed the glass full of flat, nasty not-Sprite to Traci. "Here you go, Traci," Lilly said cheerily.

"Okay, Traci, thanks for the tip, but we really need to head out. We're gonna stop and have some dinner tonight before we head home." Miley waved goodbye, then she and Lilly turned and hurried out of the nightclub.

After walking the valet through how to start their car, he pulled it around for the two of them. Miley politely opened Lilly's door for her, closing it once her wife was seated. Once she was in the driver's seat, they made their way to West Hollywood to the restaurant Le Clafoutis. It had become one of their favorite places to go when in their celebrity identities, as they both loved the different choices on the menu as well as the more relaxed atmosphere.

Once they were seated in one of the prime tables inside the restaurant, Lilly felt comfortable enough to finally ask what was on her mind. She had held off asking while they were on the way, because she could tell Miley was thinking about whatever it was that Traci had told her and didn't need to be distracted. As Lilly took a sip of her ginger ale, she said, "So."

Miley looked up as she took a long drink of her iced tea mixed with lemonade. "Well," she said, leaning in slightly, "apparently a certain trampy singer wannabe has been nosing around some of my more public friends, trying to dig up gossip on me. She even offered Traci a favor if she could give her something dirty on me." Miley held eye contact with Lilly as she added, "Or you."

Lilly felt her mouth go dry despite the fizzy ginger ale. "I sure hope she didn't tell her anything! Well, not that there'd be anything to tell."

"Exactly," Miley said. "About the most embarrassing thing I could think of would be the whole Orlando Bloom thing at her charity mini-golf event a few years back, and that wasn't that bad."

"You weren't the one who got stuck leaning over an eight-foot-tall fence."

"Hey, at least you were wearin' shorts instead of that skirt you had picked out earlier."

"That's true. You gave me good advice that night, hon."

Miley rolled her eyes as she smiled. "Don't I always?" she asked playfully.

The appetizers came out then, followed by a few fans who asked politely for autographs. Miley and Lilly both happily obliged the young girls, who appeared to be between six and ten, signing not only autograph books but also posing for pictures with the small pack of girls as their parents took several shots for each girl. By the time the photo session was over, their dinner had arrived, so they quietly dined in peace for several minutes. Throughout the dinner small opportunities for physical contact presented themselves, such as Miley taking Lilly's hand for a brief squeeze as they smiled at each other across the table, or Lilly gently rubbing her foot against Miley's bare ankle under the table. Each time they touched, the two of them giggled, as if they were getting away with some illicit deed instead of just simple, restrained displays of affection between two young women very much in love. While the two of them would have been quite happy to strip each other naked and make love right there, they had enough self-control and modesty to refrain from anything more than the small touches and smiles as they dined. After all, there would be time enough for that sort of activity when they got home.

When they were finished, Lilly paid for their dinner, leaving a very substantial tip. She also pointed out the families who had asked for autographs, and she quietly paid for their dinners as well. They made their way out to their car, tolerating the few paparazzi who had spied them at the restaurant and were waiting for them to leave. They ignored the flashes for the most part as they went to their car, and this time it was Lilly who opened the driver's door for Miley. Miley grinned before she got in and put her arms around Lilly's waist. She turned to the half dozen paparazzi still taking pictures of them and said, "Hey guys! We'll give you a really good picture if some of ya'll will flag down traffic so we can get out of here without gettin' run over."

After some nodding and general agreement amongst the pack, Miley said, "Thanks!" She then pulled Lilly in close for an intense kiss, causing Lilly to lift her right leg off the ground and flex it up behind her as she fell deeper into the steamy kiss. After long seconds the two of them slowly pulled apart, each tasting the other's lip gloss as they looked into each other's eyes.

"I love you," Lilly said breathlessly.

"I love you, too, baby," Miley answered, her own heart pounding. "Now let's head home and finish what we're startin'."

Lilly walked around the front of the car. "Works for me, hot stuff," she said with some sass as she opened her own door and sat down.

With several men bravely holding up traffic, Miley and Lilly easily pulled out of the restaurant's parking lot. As they quickly pulled away, Lilly realized just how brilliant Miley's plan had truly been. "They're not going to be able to follow us, because they didn't have time to get to their cars yet," she said, impressed.

"Uh huh."

"You are good, girlfriend."

"I try."

Miley didn't dawdle through traffic, and soon they were at their new private garage, one of the dozen that catered to celebrities eager to avoid excess public attention. Miley parked her electric blue Roadster in her new parking place as Lilly got out and unlocked the box housing the cable that would recharge the car. It had been hooked up to an array of solar panels on the top level of the garage, making recharging the car they had named Junebug free. Lilly plugged the cable in as Miley got out of the car, grabbing their purses. In the morning the vehicle would be checked by one of the service personnel that Jen had hired to care for the car while it was parked here. Since this car was publicly identified with Hannah Montana, Miley and Lilly preferred to leave it here whenever possible. While the Tesla Roadsters had become more common throughout Southern California, electric blue ones still turned heads when they traveled down the road. Driving it home would be a calculated risk, one that neither of them wanted to take unless it was absolutely necessary. Instead they switched over to Stella, Lilly's black Roadster, parked a few vehicles down from Junebug.

As they pulled out of another one of the half-dozen entrances and exits for the garage, Lilly found herself thinking about Traci's news as she drove them home. It was late now, and traffic was significantly diminished.

"So what do you think about Mikayla digging up dirt on us?" she asked Miley.

"I think she's gonna get her hands dirty and not find much of anything," Miley said as she yawned loudly. "Let her waste her time, hon."

"I just don't like her putting so much effort into trying to get something on us," Lilly said quietly.

Miley looked out the window as they left the city. "Yeah, neither do I," she said pensively. "Maybe we should just let Jen kick her ass."

Lilly grinned. "Is that an option?"

"Well, she'd probably have to go through that Margot woman first, but I bet Jen could handle 'em both."

The two of them shared a few laughs at that image, then they grew quiet again, holding hands as they leisurely drove home. "You think Lu will be there when we get home?" asked Lilly.

Miley nodded. "Yeah, I think so. It's just ten, so I think she'll be good to talk for a while."

"What time is your test tomorrow? One?" asked Lilly.

Miley nodded again. "Yeah, but it's not really much of anything to worry about. I already turned in my research paper, and the test is open-book."

"Oh," said Lilly happily. "So you can stay up a bit tonight, then."

The particular type of grin spreading across her best friend's face didn't go unnoticed by Miley. "You, uh, in the mood for somethin' tonight hon?"

Lilly glanced over at the blonde pop star sitting next to her. Hannah Montana was a fantasy of countless boys and a significant number of girls around the world, but only Lilly got to live that fantasy. Well, Lola, actually. But as appealing as making love to that sex symbol was, the person Lilly truly hungered for tonight was her wife Miley. "I'm in the mood for you, Miles," Lilly said, breaking character as she kissed Miley's hand.

"Then you get me," Miley said, feeling her body heat up as Lilly's lips pressed against her hand again and again. Finally they turned into their driveway. The headlights played across Luanne's car in the driveway as Lilly drove past it, parking in the carport. The carport would do a fine job of shielding them by itself, and with the night adding to their concealment there was no chance anyone would spot them as they got out of the car. Lilly met Miley at the front of the Roadster, kissing her softly at first but soon escalating into more than kissing. Lilly felt Miley's hands on her butt as she slid a hand up Miley's shirt, forcing herself to stop at her lover's bare stomach. Lilly gave Miley one more kiss then said, "Inside."

"Lu's in there," Miley weakly protested as Lilly removed her arm from underneath her shirt.

"She'll give us time for each other first," Lilly said, and Miley knew that was true.

"Okay," Miley said grinning as she unlocked the door. The lamp next to the couch was on, but there was no sign of Luanne. "Maybe she went upstairs to lay down?" she asked Lilly as she closed and locked the door behind them.

"Maybe," Lilly said. She set their purses down on the kitchen island and started to walk over to the couch with Miley.

Suddenly someone—no, some_ones_—leaped up from behind the couch, yelling, "SURPRISE!"

Miley screamed at the top of her lungs, with Lilly joining her just a millisecond later as the two of them flung themselves into each other's arms. As they screamed, Luanne, Peyton and Melody's expressions went from jubilant to stunned.

"We, uh, got in early, to surprise..." Peyton said, her voice falling off as she spoke.

"Ya'll scared the HELL out of us!" thundered Miley as she stomped a foot on the floor, but she stopped before she could say anything more. The look on her nieces' faces went far beyond regret, bordering on outright shock. "Lilly?" Miley said as she turned to see if Lilly was okay, but she froze as she realized exactly why her nieces looked like deer caught in the headlights of an oncoming train. They hadn't taken off their wigs. Or changed clothes.

Lilly just stared at their two nieces and Luanne where they were all frozen behind the couch. For once, she and Miley were both speechless.

"Sweet Easter Bunny," said Peyton, dropping her cell phone numbly onto her foot, where it clattered onto the floor. Melody blindly fumbled for her sister's hand, unable to tear her eyes away from her aunts Miley and Lilly. Who were, apparently, Hannah and Lola Montana.

Luanne ran a hand through her short auburn hair and blew out a long, slow breath. "Well, this is awkward."

**Author's Afterword:** Yes, Miley's accent has faded slightly over the years, but it's still there. She does try to be a bit more precise with her pronunciation when she thinks about it, but it slips her mind when she's distracted (which occurs pretty frequently). Hope everyone has a good week ahead of them, and it's good to hear that most everybody has enjoyed the Hannah Montana movie. I myself am weary of the boyfriend-of-the-week plots, but I guess I won't be happy until Disney lets Miley and Lilly be together. Oh well. Maybe some day. Until then, we'll just have to watch the Tyra Banks interview again to see how cute they would be as a couple.

See you at the next chapter, and I hope you had fun reading this one!

-- Jo --


	9. Chapter 9: Getting Their Feet Wet

**Author's Note:** Okay, time for the next chapter in our heroines' lives. I'm still loving that Tyra Banks interview, by the way. **Guitargirl007**, you raise some excellent observations in your review for chapter 8. Looking back, I have to agree with you; I've never seen Miley be that open and affectionate with anyone else EVER in public. There's no argument that the two of them are best friends in real life, and relationships that grow out of deep, solid friendships tend to be the strongest. We can only wish them the best and support them, whether as friends or as a couple if their feelings lead them that way. But my gosh, they're just such an adorable couple when they're sitting on that couch with Miley leaning back and Em holding her, playing with each other's hands! Too cute, I tell you. And **DataAndrd**, I did indeed spot that quick little kiss that Em planted on Miley's shoulder in part 6. A bit more than I would have expected for just friends, certainly. I also like how once Miley grabs Emily to stand beside her, the two of them just ignore poor Lucas. Shows who's more important to her, doesn't it? In fact, I've watched the clips again twice, and each time they seem just a bit more obvious, like they're testing the waters to see if there would be any negative reaction to them being affectionate to each other.

All this has led me to form a theory: What if Disney has been seeing feelings like these manifest between Miley and Em for some time, and all the recent storylines about the boyfriends-of-the-week (and now the Lilly-Oliver thing) are meant to distract viewers from the obvious connection between Miley and Emily? Working from that theory, it makes looking back at the first two seasons much more telling when it comes to the Miley/Lilly relationship; it also makes Emily's comments from two years ago about the show not even scratching the surface of Lilly's and Miley's relationship yet even more prescient. It would also make Miley's relationship with Justin more acceptable, as that would confirm that they really are just friends (and that would certainly explain why her parents are okay with the two of them doing things together). It could also explain why we haven't seen Miley and Em out doing things together lately, as there might be some concerns of them being a bit too obvious. Now, please bear in mind that this is just a wild theory. But it _would_ certainly explain some interesting behavior that lots of us have noted recently.

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo P.

Chapter 9: Getting Their Feet Wet

_I breathe your visions_

_They pull me through the coldest of nights_

_They steer me toward a moment in time_

_When you show me what it means for you to be mine_

_You're giving me the will to try_

_You know that there's happy in these eyes_

_Whoa you got my head in the clouds_

_Whoa you got me thinking out loud_

_The more you dream about me, the more that I believe_

_That nothing's ever out of reach_

_So dream, dream, dream_

_--_Miley Cyrus;"Dream"

As Miley, Lilly, Luanne, Peyton and Melody all stood transfixed in the living room of Miley's and Lilly's home, time seemed to halt. Luanne had been the first to speak in an attempt to break the silence with humor, but that hadn't worked. Another approach was needed.

"How was the party?" Luanne asked Miley and Lilly, who turned as one to look at her. "You know, the costume party?" Luanne added, hoping that her sister and sister-in-law would quickly pick up on her hint.

"Oh, uh, it was okay," Miley stammered, seeing what Luanne was trying to do and infinitely grateful for her sister's quick wit. "Our host had a bit too much to drink, but Lilly fixed her good."

"Yeah," said Lilly, trying not to blow the slim chance they possessed of saving their secret from Peyton and Melody. "We left kinda early and got some dinner."

"Dressed like that?" asked Peyton, pointing at Lilly's bright purple hair. The skepticism in her voice told her aunts that this was going to be a hard sell.

"You two look just like them," said Melody with an unsteady voice, still clinging to her older sister's hand. "I mean, _exactly_ like them. The clothes, and the hair, and the purses, too."

Miley and Lilly looked at each other, sharing a silent moment of decision. After a few seconds they turned back to their nieces. "You two need to sit down," Miley said gently as she and Lilly took off their wigs. Miley handed hers to Lilly, who carefully set them on the kitchen table then walked back to the living room to curl herself into Miley's lap as she sat in the large chair.

"Before we say anything else," Miley began, "Lilly and I are always going to be your aunts, and we're always going to love you."

"Aunt Miley, you're startin' to freak me out," said Melody, her voice apprehensive.

Lilly stood. She walked over and carefully took each girl's hand, leading Peyton and Melody over to the couch, where she gently pushed both of them down into a sitting position. She then walked over to Luanne and took her sister-in-law's hands. Lilly looked into those blue eyes, so similar to her wife's yet completely different all at once. "Thank you for trying, Luanne, but we can't lie to them. And it was our fault entirely that we didn't change before we came home. Do not—" When Luanne turned to avoid Lilly's gentle gaze, Lilly gently turned Luanne's head back around so they were again looking into each other's eyes. "Do _not_ blame yourself for this, Luanne Truscott, do you hear me?" Lilly said firmly. She felt a familiar hand press against her back between her shoulder blades, then she saw Miley's arm wrap around Luanne in a hug. "You tried to give us a happy surprise, when you were feeling pretty down yourself. That's all you were trying to do. So don't blame yourself for us not being as careful as we should've been."

"We were in a hurry to get home," said Miley. Immediately afterward the sound of high-pitched laughter rang through the living room. Miley looked between Lilly and Luanne, staring at her nieces rolling on the couch with laughter. "What's so dang funny?" she asked.

Luanne cleared her throat. "I, uh, was giving them the play-by-play on you two making out on your car. Before you came inside."

"So we know why you two were in a hurry to get home!" squealed Melody, face red from laughter.

"You're too young to be knowin' about stuff like that!" said Miley, only partly faking the indignation in her voice.

"Aunt Miley," said Peyton seriously. "We're teenagers. I mean, give us a break."

"Sounds like we need to have another Serious Talk with you two before much longer," Lilly said, trying to put on a solemn face but not having much success.

"You know, if you two want to act all serious, you should probably change out of your costumes," offered Melody. "It's hard to be all adult-like when you're dressed up as Hannah and Lola Montana."

Lilly turned back to face Luanne and smiled, then she and Miley both gave Luanne a hug. "It's okay," Lilly whispered again in Luanne's ear as Miley whispered the same in her other ear.

Miley looked closely at her sister and said, "If we lie to them now, how can we expect them to believe us about anything else later on?"

"We can trust them, Lu," said Lilly. "And they need to know that we trust them."

"Okay," said Luanne. "And thank you both. For everything." She hugged them both at the same time, squeezing them tightly for several seconds as she enjoyed the feelings of love and acceptance that radiated from them like heat from a fire. When she was through, she released them and walked over to the chair, wiping her eyes as she sat down.

Miley sat down on the couch next to Peyton, with Lilly sitting next to Melody. "Okay, you two, serious time," said Miley. "Do not ever, ever, _ever ever ever,_ tell anybody any part of this. Not your parents, not your friends, not your pets, NOBODY." She looked at each girl in turn. "You got me?"

Peyton and Melody both nodded, each of them suddenly quiet until Peyton carefully asked, "So you two really are...?"

"Yes," said Lilly.

"Uh huh," nodded Miley.

Lilly gently said, "This isn't the kind of thing we go around telling people... even our families. Because if it ever got out who Hannah and Lola really were, we'd never have a minute's peace again. And I enjoy my quiet, happy life with your Aunt Miley too much to let anyone ruin it just because they couldn't keep a secret."

"What she's tryin' to say is, there's lots a' good places in the mountains back home to toss a couple bodies where nobody'll ever find 'em," Miley helpfully said as she ran her hands through her hair, trying to separate the places where it was wanting to cling together.

Lilly looked at Miley. "Or we could just take them out on a boat and feed them to the sharks," she said.

Peyton and Melody looked back and forth between Miley and Lilly, then back to Miley again as she spoke.

"That's not a bad idea. Wouldn't have to get 'em back to Tennessee that way."

"We won't tell anybody!" said Melody.

"Yeah, we swear!" followed Peyton.

"Good," said Miley. "Now I think it's probably time for you two to get in bed. C'mon and we'll show you your room."

"Bed?" said Peyton indignantly. "After you drop a bombshell on us like you just did? How are we gonna sleep _now_?"

"I'm kinda tired, Pey," Melody said, much to Peyton's consternation. The younger girl then yawned loudly.

"That's because you two are still on Tennessee time. What time is it here?" She looked around, finally seeing the clock on their DVR. "Almost eleven. That means for you two, it's nearly two in the morning."

Knowing she was beaten, Peyton held up a hand and said, "Alright, alright. I'm goin'." She and Melody followed Miley and Lilly up the stairs, with Luanne bringing up the rear. "But we are _so_ definitely going to talk in the mornin'."

Miley stopped outside what used to be Jackson's old room, although now it was unrecognizable as such. She flipped on the light, illuminating a cheery room with pastel blue walls, a queen-size bed with a white comforter festooned with green and blue squares, circles and rectangles, and ivory carpeting. "This is the guest room," Miley said. "Hope you can live with the queen bed. There's a bathroom right down the hall in the nursery."

"Ooooh! The nursery!" said Melody. "I wanna see it!" She actually hopped up and down twice, which Lilly thought was so cute she nearly picked her up and hugged her.

"It's down here," said Luanne helpfully, smiling at the new teenager's excitement. She led them to the nursery, switching on the light as they got in the room. It was the room that used to be Miley's and Lilly's old bedroom less than a year ago, and much of the furniture in it was still the same. However, the walls had been repainted a soft pink, and gauzy curtains were hanging over the windows instead of the older window coverings that had previously hung in the room. Leaning against the wall was a large cardboard box containing a crib that still needed to be put together; however, Miley and Lilly had already assembled the changing table, which sat close to the door. The old Hannah Closet was still in place, but now Miley and Lilly used it to store most of their shoes and boots, with some space reserved for items they didn't wear as much but wanted to keep for one reason or another. Most of their clothes that they weren't going to wear again were now donated to the HLM Foundation to be auctioned off, with proceeds going to either the Foundation or another charity.

"This is, like, adorable!" said Peyton, clapping her hands together as she looked around the room. "What did this room used to be before you turned it into a nursery?"

"This was our bedroom," said Lilly proudly. "For several years. And it was Miley's bedroom before we started dating."

"But you were still over here all the time," Miley quickly said, turning to look at Lilly. "It was already partly yours, Lil."

"Aww," cooed Lilly as she ran her hand through Miley's long, full hair. "You were sweet to me from the beginning, Miley. And you've stayed sweet."

Miley held her arm out, inviting Lilly to lean against her. Lilly immediately did so, resting her head on Miley's right shoulder as they held each other. "Sure glad I took that charm bracelet when you offered it to me," Miley said with a teasing grin. "Otherwise you might'a stomped off and found another best friend."

"Never would've happened," Lilly said firmly. "I was putting that charm bracelet on your arm whether you wanted it or not, Miley. You just didn't know it." She lifted her head and looked at her nieces. "I was ready to go stalker on her," she said.

"Oh, please!" laughed Miley as all of them walked out of the nursery, Miley turning off the light as she and Lilly were the last ones to leave the room. "You had just met me! We didn't know our feelings were like that back then, and you know that just like I do."

"But we both knew that we needed each other, Miles, even then. At first it was just as friends, but then our feelings got... complicated."

As they went back into the guest room, Peyton sighed loudly. "Boy, I know how that goes," she said dramatically as she flung herself back onto the bed, arms stretched out above her head.

"Yeah," Melody said as she repeated her sister's actions. "Me too," she moaned as she lay beside her sister on the bed, the two of them paralleling each other neatly.

"Uh oh," said Miley, still holding Lilly next to her. Her body was starting to heat up where Lilly was surreptitiously running her left hand up Miley's back under her shirt, so she knew they wouldn't have much more time to talk tonight. She summoned her willpower to prolong her wife's foreplay a bit longer, knowing it would only sweeten things in a few minutes. "I know that tone a' voice. What's botherin' you two?"

"Boys," sighed Peyton dramatically.

"Girls," sighed Melody, her tone and inflection identical to her sister's.

Miley and Lilly looked at each other, and each of them raised a matching eyebrow, mirroring each other.

"That is so creepy when you two do that," said Luanne with a laugh. "I mean, the eyebrow thing, together. I swear, Lilly, you might as well be a Stewart as good as you do it."

"I'll take that as a compliment," said Lilly proudly, "even if you Stewart women are as stubborn as old goats."

"Yeah, you fit right in, don'tcha?" said Miley smoothly, eliciting giggles from Peyton and Melody.

"Okay, I think I'm going to get some sleep," said Luanne as she yawned loudly. "Me taking the couch still work with you two?"

"Of course," said Lilly.

"Why don't you sleep up here with us, Luanne?" asked Melody.

Luanne smiled and said, "Nah, I prefer the couch when I stay over here. Sleep better that way." She kissed Peyton and Melody both on the forehead. "Get some sleep, you two. It'll take you a day or two to get used to the time difference." She turned to Miley and Lilly, who gathered her in for a long hug. "Thanks for being there for me," Luanne whispered.

"We're always here for you, Lu," said Miley, patting her sister on the back.

"And we always will be," Lilly said as she looked into Luanne's eyes. Those blue eyes weren't as haunted as they used to be, but Lilly suspected there would always be some measure of regret reflected in them. "You're a good person, Lu, and we love you."

"Love you two too," Luanne whispered, giving them one more squeeze before releasing them and heading downstairs.

"Okay, girls," said Miley, "you know where the bathroom is in the nursery, right down the hall. We've got a night light in the hall that'll let you get down there without runnin' into the walls."

"We hope," Lilly added, looking at her lovely but accident-prone wife.

"We'll see ya'll in the mornin'," Miley said, letting Lilly's little verbal poke slide as she walked over and gave each of them a hug where they sat up on the side of the bed. "And we'll talk some about boys and girls, I guess." She turned to look at Lilly. "Which one do you want?"

Lilly thought for a minute. "Well, you were always better at dealing with boys than I was," she said.

"Yeah, but you understand how they think better than I do."

"That's true," allowed Lilly. "Flip for it? In the morning?"

Miley smiled as she reached out and took Lilly's hand in her own. "Sounds good to me, girlfriend."

Lilly pulled Miley forward with her as she hugged both of their nieces. "Sleep good, big girls. We'll let you sleep in as long as you want tomorrow." She pulled the door closed as she followed Miley out of the guest room, grinning at her wife as they looked at each other, desire quite evident in both sets of bright blue eyes. Without another word the two of them broke into a run, covering the rest of the hall in seconds as they raced into their bedroom, pausing only to close the door behind them.

With speed and precision coming from years of practice and an intimate knowledge of each other bordering on the supernatural, Miley and Lilly shed their clothes in less than five seconds, hitting the bed in less than ten. They made love with a passion bordering on frenzy, fueled by pent-up desire for each other that had been building throughout the day, reaching a peak after dinner tonight.

For Lilly, the world outside their bedroom quickly ceased to exist, then the bedroom faded away, leaving nothing but Miley to flood her senses, filling them with her wife's beauty, her cries and moans, her burning skin slicked with sweat, her scent mingled with Lilly's favorite perfume, and her light, salty taste. It was more than enough for Lilly, and she could have been happy in that bed with her wife and best friend for the rest of her life.

Lilly expertly brought Miley up, up into her first orgasm, quickly followed by her second. When her third rocked her body just a minute later, Miley abandoned all pretense of self-control. She twisted her body, grabbing at Lilly and pulling herself around to where she could more readily touch the woman she loved in every way possible. She could hear Lilly's voice saying something, but Miley was too far gone to answer her with words. Instead she threw herself forward on the bed, rolling Lilly from where she had been on her hands and knees onto her side. Miley fell upon her wife, seeking out what she wanted and forcefully laying claim to her Lilly with her gentle mouth and strong fingers. As Miley made love to Lilly heatedly, she felt Lilly push her legs apart then pause as the first wave of orgasm washed over her. Miley paused for a moment as Lilly recovered and began to touch her again, first shallowly, then deeper.

"Don't stop, Miley," Lilly whispered loudly as she squeezed Miley's thighs. "Don't ev—" She gasped as Miley drove back into her, at full speed without any buildup whatsoever. "Yes, baby..." Lilly whispered between clenched teeth as she felt her body abruptly peak, then explode with an intense release that caused Lilly to black out for long seconds.

Feeling her wife's grip slacken on her legs, Miley growled. She rolled them so that she was above Lilly, then she began to work her hips down, then back and forth across Lilly's face and lips, being careful not to hurt either of them but unable to sit still and wait for Lilly to come back at her own pace. "Wake up," Miley said loudly, giving one more grind that seemed to have the results she was looking for, as Lilly's grip once again resumed on her legs then intensified.

"You like waking me up that way, huh?" Lilly said with a distinct note of sass in her voice. She smacked Miley's butt hard with her right hand, coaxing a sharp cry from her best friend that seemed to rattle the walls. She immediately resumed her work on the woman she would spend eternity with, determined to bring her ecstasy like she had never felt before. Lilly put both hands to work as she continued to make love to Miley, pleased as she heard Miley's groans followed by sharp gasps of air as Miley began her climactic ride. As Miley began to shudder in her grip, Lilly turned up the speed and force, making Miley loudly scream her name time after time, separated by deep breaths sucked in between shouts. Lilly felt her feet touch the headboard, and she pushed against the smooth pine to twist them into a roll across the king-sized bed.

Miley flailed her arms uselessly as Lilly rolled them across the twisted, sweat-soaked sheets. She was now beyond even cries and shouts; all she could do was moan and clutch at Lilly's strong legs as she rode out what had to be the longest, most sensational orgasm she had ever felt. Even when Lilly rolled them off the bed onto the floor, Miley felt nothing except the stinging bliss of being claimed by her Lilly. No one else would ever—_could_ ever—call Miley her own, or his own. Only Lilly, her sweet Lilly, would be able to do that, and that was a thought that would always give Miley comfort.

As Lilly began to gently remove herself from Miley and catch her own breath, she registered that they were on the fluffy rug next to their bed. Her right shoulder was tingling, probably from where she had fallen, and as she mentally inventoried her body, her right hip also began to tingle. She hoped that she had borne the brunt of the fall, because worrying that she had accidentally hurt Miley while they were making love always managed to make her feel bad. "Sorry, Miley," she said carefully.

As Lilly pulled herself out from under Miley's throbbing, panting body, she looked down as Miley rolled onto her back. The brunette was feverishly trying to catch her breath, her chest showing the ribs beneath the skin as it rose and fell with each deep breath. Her hair was wild, splayed across the rug and hardwood floor as well as her breasts, and the primal beauty of her wife in that disheveled position stirred a feeling inside Lilly that she was not expecting. Pride. Pride in her beautiful wife, pride in being able to bring Miley such joy and passion, pride in their relationship that surpassed all boundaries that had once existed between them. It was not a boastful or envious pride, but a simple one that filled Lilly with hope and resolve at times when she needed it most. It also gave her a capacity to love and forgive others that she had never known before. Truly, loving Miley had made her a better person, and she knew Miley would say the same.

Lilly smiled as she crawled forward, hovering over Miley as the taller woman held her hands over her hair-covered eyes, still gasping as her heart pounded in her chest. Finally Lilly saw Miley's breathing slow and become slightly less strenuous.

Miley swallowed carefully before she spoke, making sure her tongue and mouth still worked correctly. Because she wasn't entirely sure at this point. Finally, she opened her mouth and said, "What in the name of Neyland Stadium could you be sorry about, Lilly, after _that?_"

Lilly giggled once as she watched Miley lick her lips, her face flushed and glowing. "About rolling us off the bed."

Miley moved her hands from over her eyes and felt the ground on each side of her. "We're not on the bed? Where are we?"

"On the floor."

Miley patted the floor, then she moved her hands closer, touching the furry rug. "How about that," she said weakly.

Lilly reached forward and gently brushed Miley's dark chestnut hair out of her eyes, revealing glimmering eyes as blue as Lilly had ever seen them. "You're beautiful," Lilly said spontaneously, the words spilling from her lips as her brain formed them.

Miley smiled as she looked up into sparkling eyes blue as the afternoon sky. "Because you make me feel beautiful," she whispered as she pressed her right hand against Lilly's face.

Lilly closed her eyes and leaned her head against Miley's hand, relishing the firm support that Miley gave her not only now but also in every aspect of their life. No further words were needed by either of them as Lilly opened her eyes and looked deeply into Miley's. She leaned down and kissed Miley, the softness of their lips touching in stark contrast to the fury of their earlier lovemaking.

The soft chiming of Miley's cell phone on the floor on the other side of their bed broke the spell each girl held on the other. "Who the heck would be calling at this time of night?" said Lilly as she stood and then helped Miley up. They both held each other for a few seconds as they regained their balance. The notes from the phone quickly stopped, indicating a new message for Miley rather than a missed call.

As soon as she felt steady enough to move, Miley slowly walked forward, holding hands with Lilly as they moved around the foot of the bed to retrieve the phone. Miley bent down and picked up the phone from where it lay on the floor, pressing the button to read the new text message.

_OMG!!!1!!1_

_can u 2 screw any louder?_

_think our ears r bleeding_

_P+M_

Miley and Lilly sat down—no, _fell_ onto the bed as laughter overcame them. They held each other as they shook with laughter that was truly the perfect companion to their fiery lovemaking, giving them a mental release to complement the physical and emotional release they had achieved together just seconds before.

"They're going to pay us back, you know," Lilly said as tears of humor fell from her eyes onto Miley's bare shoulder.

"No," Miley said as she tried to stop laughing, "they're gonna kill us."

As the sun rose the next morning, Lilly found herself stirring first, as was usual. She leaned forward slightly, kissing Miley on her right temple as she still slept. "C'mon, pretty girl," Lilly whispered. "Let's go for a morning swim."

Miley didn't open her eyes, but a smile slowly stretched across her face, just barely visible where she had most of her face buried in their large pillow. "Okay," she said softly. "But I get to pick which swimsuit you wear."

"Then I get to pick yours," countered Lilly.

"Deal," said Miley. She pushed herself up as Lilly hopped out of bed. "What time is it?"

"Eight," said Lilly. "Figured the girls would be up by now."

Miley cast a look of disbelief at Lilly as she pulled a dark green bikini out of their swimwear drawer. "Obviously you don't remember when you were a teenager," she said as she tossed the bikini to Lilly, who caught it in the air as she walked over to the wardrobe Miley was digging through.

"Their time is later, Miles. It's eleven according to their bodies."

Miley took the hot pink bikini Lilly handed her and held Lilly's gaze with her eyes. "Like I said..."

Lilly playfully pushed Miley on the shoulder. "Oh please! I can't _count _the times I had to walk right into your room, climb up on the bed with you and then wake you up."

Miley got a dreamy look on her face. "Sometimes I was faking," she said, batting her eyelashes at Lilly.

"So I'd crawl up on the bed with you?" Lilly asked quietly as they slipped out of their bedroom.

Miley nodded as they silently made their way down the stairs. She stopped at the closet next to the back door and grabbed two towels and a beach blanket. She stuffed them into their massive beach bag and stepped into her orange flip-flops. She opened the back door for Lilly, taking their key that was threaded onto an elastic bracelet that she slipped onto her wrist. When they were both outside, Miley locked the back door as quietly as she could.

Once they were off the back porch and onto the beach, Lilly once again started her line of questioning. "Okay, getting back to what we were talking about. You'd lay there like you were asleep just to see if I'd crawl into bed with you?"

Miley grinned as she handed Lilly their sunscreen. "Well, it was more like I was _hoping_ you'd crawl into bed with me."

Lilly began working the sunscreen into her shoulders as they walked to where the surf was breaking. "You're a sneak, Miley Truscott." She stopped and began rubbing sunscreen onto Miley's belly, just slightly fuller than normal. "And your daughter's gonna be a sneak, too."

"Because she takes after you," Miley retorted as she dropped the beach bag. She pulled out the beach blanket and shook it out, making a place for them to sit. "When you finish getting me, I'll do you," she said, quickly adding, "The sunscreen."

Lilly grinned. Miley had beat her to it. "Okay," she said. "You getting in with me this morning?"

Miley stretched, her arms going up to the sky. "Yeah, I think so. If it's not too cold."

Lilly rolled her eyes as she said, "Wimp."

Inside the house, Peyton began to stir not long after. She sat up, rubbing her eyes to remove the light dusting of particulate matter from the corners of her eyes. She turned to look down at her sister. "Eww," she said as she saw the small puddle of drool under the side of Melody's mouth. "Drool Girl strikes again." She shook Melody as she said, "Hey, puddle girl! Wake up!"

"Mmm," mumbled Melody, pushing back at her sister. "Don't call me that."

"Then quit droolin' on your pillow!" Peyton slid out of the bed. "Dang, I didn't get much sleep last night." Left unsaid was exactly why she hadn't slept much, but she was fairly sure Melody could figure it out.

"Nothin' like sex education class, huh, Pey?" Melody said with a smirk as she sat up. She looked at the far wall as she said, "I hope when I get married I find a woman who does that to me."

Peyton turned to her sister with a frown. "Okay, don't you try to put any more images in my head. I got enough in there already now." An evil smirk crawled across her face. "I could always tell that girl at church that you're sweet on her," she said slowly, delighting in Melody's eyebrows shooting up nearly to her hairline.

"You wouldn't dare!" said Melody loudly. "I would freakin' _die_ if you told her!"

Peyton quickly jumped back as Melody tore herself free of the covers. "What was her name? Julie? Jeanie?" she said, stepping out the bedroom door.

"None of your business!" said Melody, right on her sister's heels. When Peyton suddenly stopped, Melody ducked under her left arm and kept going, right into the nursery. "I get the bathroom first, since you're such a bitch!" she yelled over her shoulder.

Peyton stood with her hands on her hips, watching as her sister ran into the bathroom. "Dang it," she said softly. "Maybe there's a bathroom downstairs."

As she made her way down the stairs, Peyton smelled pancakes cooking. "Mmmm, that smells good!" she said loudly. She turned the corner at the foot of the stairs only to see Luanne at the stove. "You cookin' pancakes for us, Luanne?"

"Yep," said Luanne, not turning around. "There's a bathroom right down that hall there, if you need one." She pointed over her shoulder.

"Thanks," said Peyton, hurrying down the hall.

When Peyton was done, she saw that Melody was in the kitchen. Both of them still had on their nightgowns, and Luanne was just setting the pancakes on the table. There was still a stack of them next to the stove, and the younger girls guessed that those were for their two aunts.

"So," said Luanne, a faint grin on her face. "Sleep well last night?"

Peyton looked up, about to say something when she realized exactly what Luanne's expression indicated. "You knew!" she shouted. "You knew that they were gonna do that!"

Now Luanne's grin turned into a broad smile. She speared a bite of pancake on her fork as she said, "Why do you think I sleep on the couch downstairs when I spend the night here?"

"Meanie," Melody said. "But since you fixed breakfast for us, we'll forgive you."

"Very generous of you," Luanne said around a mouthful of food. "Milk's in the fridge. You can pour me a glass too. Cabinet right next to the sink for glasses."

As Peyton and Melody got up and got three glasses, Peyton asked, "So where are the porn stars this mornin'?"

Luanne nearly choked on her current bite of pancakes. "I suggest you don't call 'em that," she said after she managed to swallow. "Or you'll probably get a real concert tonight."

Peyton paused. "Hadn't thought about that," she admitted. "Okay, we'll call them somethin' else."

"Smart girl," said Luanne. "I expect they're down on the beach. Lilly likes to get up early and go surfing. Some mornings they go for a walk down the beach, sometimes a bike ride." She got up and walked to the back door, picking up a pair of binoculars from the desk next to the door. She looked through them down at the beach. "Yep, Lilly's surfin' and Miley's watchin' her."

Suddenly, amid great bustling noises, Luanne found herself flanked by her two cousins as they peered out the back door at the beach. "Holy crap!" said Melody. "The ocean's, like, right there!" Without another word, Peyton turned and ran upstairs, with Melody hot on her heels.

"Finish your breakfast, girls!" Luanne called up the stairs. "Or Lilly'll finish it for you when you get back!"

As Peyton and Melody ran down to the ocean, they paused long enough to drop their towels onto the large beach blanket. No one else was near them, so they knew it had to belong to their aunts. Once that was done, they kicked off their sandals and ran through the warm sand to where the ocean was lapping onto the beach.

"Ahhh!" Peyton squealed with delight. "I can't believe we're swimming in December!"

"And the water's warm!" said Melody, crashing forward against the surf as she waded out to waist-deep water. "Whoa," she said as she looked farther out into the ocean.

Peyton turned to look at where her sister's attention currently was. "Holy crap, is that _Lilly?_" she asked, astounded.

Much farther out, they watched as a large wave slowly rose from the rest of the ocean. At the top of the wave's crest, a woman in a green bikini began to carve a path across the wave's front, arms extended as she held her balance despite the roaring wall of water just inches behind her body. As the two teenagers watched, they saw Lilly reach behind her and run her fingers through the wave right behind her, spraying a small amount of water behind her hand as she continued to ride the front of the wave. For long seconds she seemed almost to be crawling along, then she turned the board slightly just as the wave began to crest. The white foamy spray fell down on Lilly, but then they saw her squirt out of the foam, still on her board as she pumped her fist in celebration.

"Whooo!" Miley yelled, her voice carrying in with the waves to where Peyton and Melody were. "That was the best one yet, sweetheart!"

Lilly looked down at Miley, then she fell backwards into the water, obviously on purpose. Miley swam over to Lilly's surfboard and held onto it as Lilly popped back up and did the same. The two of them floated with the tide for a minute, then they began to kiss as they held onto the yellow board. Finally they spotted their nieces; Miley and Lilly both waved to them. Miley clambered up onto Lilly's surfboard, getting what looked like a swat on her butt as she did so, then Lilly got behind the surfboard and began kicking, bringing them into the shore as she pushed the surfboard carrying her wife in front of her.

A few minutes later, Miley and Lilly were in close enough to stand, so Miley rolled off of the board into the water. "So what'd ya think?" she asked the teenagers proudly. "Isn't she amazing to watch?" She moved to stand behind Lilly, wrapping her arms around Lilly's waist as she held her best friend.

"That was really cool," said Melody, still slightly awed at how Lilly had ridden that wave, which had to have been at least fourteen or fifteen feet tall. "How long have you been surfin'?"

"Since I was five," said Lilly with a smile. "Kinda hard not to learn, when everyone around here knows how."

"Not for me," said Miley quickly, looking away as she made a funny face. "Hard part for me is not fallin' in the water."

"So," said Peyton, "when can we talk some more about what you two told us last night?"

Miley turned to look at her niece, and her face was more serious now. "When we get back inside," she said. "We don't need to talk about things like that when we're out where other people can hear us."

As Miley spoke, Lilly moved to put her surfboard between herself and the other three. When Peyton and Melody were focused on Miley, Lilly slipped under the water's surface and swam forward to where the girls were. She grabbed the first leg she touched and bit it, eliciting an initial scream at first contact that only got louder as Lilly playfully gnawed on the calf muscle. When a foot kicked her in the head, she let go and swam to the surface, breaking into the air to the sound of her wife laughing hysterically.

"Oh, that was priceless!" Miley shouted, giving Lilly a high five as they stood in the water coming almost up to their breasts. "She almost jumped all the way out of the water!"

Peyton was looking quite pale, and Melody looked like she didn't know whether to laugh or cry. She finally decided to laugh, getting a splash of salt water from her sister. Peyton looked at Lilly, her face still a bit shaken but smiling. "Nice one, Aunt Lilly," she admitted. She paused a few seconds, then she asked, "Is it okay if we pee in the ocean? 'Cause I think I just did."

"I think the ocean will forgive you this time, Pey," Lilly said with a grin. "C'mon, let's go in and get something to eat."

As they splashed their way out of the ocean, Lilly picked up her surfboard and tucked it under her arm. Miley put her arm around Peyton and said, "Hey Peyton, I did the same thing the first time Lilly did that to me. Oliver was distracting me, then all of a sudden I felt these teeth on me. I peed all over myself while I was screamin' at the top of my lungs."

Lilly gave Miley a funny look. "As I remember, it was _me_ you peed on, Miles."

Miley grinned. "Serves you right for bitin' me where you did," she said with a laugh as they began to dry off.

Almost an hour later, Peyton and Melody were watching in amazement as Lilly finished her fifth pancake, complete with butter and syrup. She and Miley had changed into t-shirts and shorts before they sat down to eat, and Luanne had stepped outside to call Ron.

"How the heck can you eat so much?" asked Melody.

Lilly gave her a sideways look as she picked up her plate. "Because your aunt Miley keeps me busy," she said with a smirk.

The ringing of the doorbell made everybody turn to look. "I'll get it," said Miley as she got up and walked to the door. She opened to the door to reveal the rather large figure of Albert Dontzig, their next-door neighbor.

"Hey Mr. Dontzig," Miley said pleasantly. Since Robbie Ray had been gone, Dontzig hadn't been quite as blustery as they had grown to expect, and Miley suspected that in his own odd way, their neighbor was missing his verbal sparring partner.

"Morning, country girl," Dontzig said gruffly. "You think you could do me a favor today?"

Miley shrugged her shoulders. "I guess," she said. "But I've got a final exam later today. What do you need?"

Dontzig looked a bit apprehensive before he spoke, but he managed to say, "You remember my niece Patty?"

Miley thought for a second or two, then she had a flash of a memory of being stuck in a rather hot, sweaty moose outfit. "The little monster?" she asked, surprised.

"You do remember!" Dontzig said, smiling. "Well, she's back in town for a few days, and I was wondering if you and your girlfriend could, you know, talk to her about something for me."

Now Miley looked a bit more reluctant. "The last time I babysat her didn't work out so great," she said as she stepped out onto the porch, closing the door behind her. "How old is she now?"

"Fifteen," Dontzig said, shuddering. "She's not quite as nasty as she used to be." He looked away for a moment, then he said, "Look, I know I can be a real jerk at times. But I do love my niece. And she's been having a real hard time at her school this year."

"What's going on?" asked Miley. She placed her hand over her heart as she felt Lilly's curiosity manifest as a tingling warmth in her chest. _It's okay, hon_, Miley thought. _Tell you in just a minute_. The tingling eased slightly, letting Miley know that Lilly had understood. She smiled slightly as she considered just how deep her connection with Lilly truly ran, letting a pulse of love flow to her wife.

"It's her dating habits," Dontzig finally blurted out.

Miley stared at him briefly. "Okay, you gotta give me a little more to work on, here."

Dontzig turned red, but he managed to get out, "Let's just say she's not into the boys, okay?"

Now Miley was beginning to see. "So she thinks she's into girls?" she asked. When he nodded, Miley guessed at the rest. "And you want Lilly and me to talk to her about it?"

"Bingo!" he said loudly. "Look, she's really confused right now. She's not exactly sure what team to play for, if you get what I'm saying. And I figured that since you two, are, you know..."

Miley took a moment to digest what Dontzig was saying. "But Lilly and I always liked boys before we fell in love with each other," she said. "I'm not sure if we're—"

"But you had people at your school do stuff to you, didn't you, and say hurtful things about you? I mean, when they found out about you and your girlfriend?"

"Lilly's my wife, Dontzig," Miley said, squaring her shoulders as she stood up as tall as she could. "We've been married for five years now. But yes, we did have some bitches at our school do mean things to us."

"Look," Dontzig said, running his hand through his short, curly hair. "I'm not asking for you to babysit her again. I'm just asking for you to talk to her for a bit. She's going through a rough time, and I was hoping you could help her. Even if it's just telling her that other people have gone through this too."

As he spoke, something occurred to Miley. Melody was probably going through much of the same things at her school. Maybe the two of them could talk to each other. Heck, it might even give Peyton and Melody a friend closer to their age to do stuff with for the next few days. She made up her mind. "Okay, we'll talk to her."

"Fabulous!" said Dontzig, relief evident on his face. "I'll send her over in a bit."

"Okay," Miley said. It felt like there was more she should say, so she hurriedly tried to think of what her father would say in this situation. She pointed a finger at Dontzig and said, "But you owe us one, Dontzig."

"I know," he grumbled as he turned around and began walking back to his house down the road.

Miley considered what she had agreed to, then she turned around and went back inside.

"Who was that, Miles?" asked Lilly as Miley walked back over to where everyone was sitting in front of the television. Miley swung her legs over the back of the couch as she sat in Lilly's lap carefully.

"Dontzig," Miley said. "He wants us to talk to his niece today."

"Not the niece you took to Make-a-Moose," Lilly asked skeptically. "Please tell me you didn't agree to—"

"He just wants us to talk to her for a little bit," Miley said quickly. "She thinks she might be gay, and apparently some kids at school are giving her a hard time."

"How old is she now?" asked Lilly.

"Fifteen," Miley replied. "So I figured that Mel might be able to talk with her, too. They're close to the same age, so maybe they might relate with each other."

Melody looked a bit uncertain. "Hey, I'll try to talk to her, but why would she want to listen to someone two years younger than her?"

"Because you're comfortable with who you are, Mel," Miley said as she smiled at her niece. "You always have been. When you realized that you were attracted to girls, it never bothered you."

Melody blushed slightly as she looked at Miley and Lilly. "That's because I had two really great aunts who taught me that I couldn't help who I was, or who my heart pointed me to. They were such good examples that I knew that I had nothing to be ashamed of."

"You really feel that way about us?" Lilly asked, slightly surprised.

As Melody nodded, Peyton said, "We both do. You showed us that we have to be open to love when it presents itself, because sometimes the best thing we could ever dream of is right in front of our faces."

"Sounds like you two have some smart aunts," said Luanne, who had slipped back inside.

"We sure do," said Melody proudly. "Three of them," she added with a smile as she turned to look at Luanne.

Luanne looked more than a bit surprised. "Me? You think of me as an aunt, too?"

Melody nodded vigorously. "Yup. We haven't spent as much time with you as we have with Aunt Miley and Aunt Lilly, but you're, well, almost like their sister, Aunt Lu. All three of you are really close, so of course we think of you as our aunt too."

Luanne felt a tear run down her cheek as she stood there. "Thank you," she said softly, marveling at how perceptive teens and tweens, which Melody was until last week, could be. They might not know the truth of Luanne's relation to Miley, but they could see how closely Miley and Lilly regarded Luanne, and that was enough.

"Okay," said Miley, trying to steer the conversation onto a less weighty subject. "So now that you two know what your Aunt Lilly and I do in our spare time, we need to make some plans for the next few days."

Lilly said, "You want to take them?" as she kissed Miley on her cheek.

Miley nodded. "Yeah." She turned to look at her sister. "You want to come, Lu? I think Lola could always use her personal assistant."

Luanne shook her head. "Thanks, Miley, but Ron's coming back into town this weekend. He was just saying that they're taking a break for Christmas, and Kelly is letting the band and crew off a couple days early." She looked wistful as she added, "I miss my man."

"Those Truscotts get under your skin, don't they, girl?" Miley said happily, earning her a tickle from her wife.

"Yeah, they sure do." Luanne smiled sadly and turned to walk back outside.

Miley turned to watch Luanne go outside and sit in one of the lounge chairs on the back porch. She turned back to Peyton and Melody and said, "You two want to go see a movie this weekend?"

Peyton and Melody looked at each other. "Sure," said Peyton as Melody nodded her assent. "What movie?"

Miley grinned. "Oh, how about the new Lola Montana movie that opens this weekend?" she asked, pleased by the looks of surprise and delight on their nieces' faces.

"Seriously?" shouted Peyton. "That's kick-ass! What time is it gonna be showin'?"

Now Miley reached down and patted Lilly on her leg. "Well, it's gonna be a bit more involved than just goin' to a movie."

"We need to get you two dresses," added Lilly. "If you're going to the official premiere as Lola's and Hannah's special guests, you need to look the part." She almost laughed at how the looks of surprises shifted into looks of utter shock. "I probably need to call somebody. Who do you think, hon?"

Miley thought for a moment, then she said, "How about Kylee Dean? She did a really nice job on that dress of yours for the Grammys last year. And she did say to give her a call if we ever needed anything."

"Yeah, she did, didn't she?"

Miley nodded. She carefully stood up, then she bent over and kissed Lilly lightly on the lips. "Tell her if she can come through for us, Hannah'll wear one of her dresses to the next big event."

"I think Lola will too," Lilly said with a smile up at the woman she adored. "You going to talk to Lu?"

Miley nodded. "Yeah, something's eatin' at her, and I want to try and help if we can."

"Good girl," said Lilly as she patted Miley's leg. She stood as well and picked up her phone, flipping through her list of phone numbers. "I need my Lola phone," she said. "Be right back, girls!" she yelled as she ran up the stairs.

"And I'm gonna go talk to your aunt Luanne," Miley added. "That was really sweet of you, by the way, telling her that."

"We mean it," Peyton said. "We might not spend as much time with her as we do with you and Aunt Lilly, but we love her."

Miley walked over and kissed each girl on the top of her head. "You two are sweet. Be listening for the doorbell, okay? Dontzig's niece Patty is supposed to be coming over to talk to us for a while." She walked across the room to the back door. "I'll be back in just a minute."

No sooner had Miley gone outside than the doorbell rang. "You get it," said Peyton, pushing Melody nearly off the couch.

"Why me?"

"Because I'm older than you."

Melody sighed. This was an argument that really wasn't worth having. As she stood she grumbled, "Don't see why we have to play therapist," as she walked to the door. The doorbell rang again as she crossed the living room. "I'm comin', I'm comin'!" she yelled. She reached the front door and swiftly opened it. "Don't have to—" The words stuck in her throat as she gazed at the girl standing in the doorway.

She was a bit taller than Melody, with black hair cropped short but somehow pulled up into two stubs of pigtails that stuck straight up on each side of her head. Her bangs had been left longer, and they dangled in front of hazel eyes that locked in on Melody's own green ones. Melody's gaze continued down, taking in the small black choker around the girl's neck, a small silver charm of some sort dangling from it. Her top was a black t-shirt that had been partially cut away at the bottom, revealing a pierced navel with a small chain hanging down, drawing Melody's gaze even further down to her cutoff olive drab shorts, with long legs continuing down to the short black boots she was wearing.

As Melody tried to catch her breath, she somehow pulled her eyes back up to the girl's face, where she abruptly realized that the girl was checking _her_ out, and Melody was glad she had taken a shower and put on running shorts and a t-shirt after getting back from the beach. As the girl's hazel eyes once again found Melody's green ones, Melody stammered out, "Um, h-h-hi. I'm Melody. From Tennessee. I'm out here visiting my aunts."

The dark-haired girl smiled, and Melody felt her heart stop momentarily. "Hi, Melody from Tennessee," she said in a voice much softer than her clothing style. "I'm Patty, but I go by Trish now. You mind if I come in? My uncle Albert said that your... aunts were going to talk to me about some things that are going on." Now Trish's smile faded, and she looked more than a bit uncomfortable. "About, you know, some questions I've got. About things, you know?"

Melody stepped back, letting Trish step inside, then she closed the door. She sneaked a peek at Trish's rear as the slightly older girl walked past, and this time her heart skipped several beats. "Yeah," said Melody. "This is my sister, Peyton," she said, walking over to the couch.

"Hey," said Peyton, not batting an eye at the new girl's outfit. It did look cute, in a Goth sort of way. "Well, since we've got company, I guess I should finish getting dressed," she said, standing. She still had a robe on over her swimsuit. "I'll be in the shower, Mel. Be back down in a bit."

Out on the back porch, Miley was holding Luanne's hand as her sister cried softly. "I hate feeling this way!" said Luanne angrily.

"Lu, you can't help missing Ron," Miley said tenderly. "I know it drove me crazy when Lilly was gone a few months ago, and that was just for a few days. I know it's been hard on you."

Luanne looked up and managed a small smile for Miley. "It's not just that, Miley. I miss my home, too." She wiped away the tears on her cheeks and added, "I miss Tennessee. I miss the woods, and the mountains." She laughed once, humorlessly. "You'd think I'd be over it, after living out here four years. But it's just gotten worse, this homesickness."

Miley held her arms out, and her twin sister fell against her. Miley held her tightly, rocking them slowly. "It'll be okay, Lu. We're all goin' back to Misty Hollow in a few days for Christmas. You'll feel better then."

"Did I make a mistake, Miley?" Luanne asked, her voice anguished. "By moving out here?"

"Well, your school was out here, Lu. And Ron was out here. So, no, I don't think you made a mistake."

Luanne felt her mind race for long seconds, but having her sister here for support helped immensely. And she knew that if Lilly was—

"Hey," called a voice from above them. "Everything okay down there?"

Miley looked up through the deck above her and said to Lilly, "Lu's feelin' a bit homesick." As she saw Lilly move to the railing, Miley loudly, "No, Lilly Truscott! Don't you dare!"

Luanne looked up to see Lilly's feet dangling down, then she could see Lilly's belly as her sister-in-law climbed down the upper deck's railing. Lilly suddenly dropped down, landing on her feet in a deep crouch with a satisfied grin on her face.

"Not funny," said Miley seriously. "I asked you not to be doin' that. You might fall and get hurt."

"Hey, I said, 'Only in emergencies,' remember?" Lilly said as she walked over to the two of them. "What's bothering you, Lu?" Lilly asked.

Luanne looked up. "You knew?" she asked, surprised.

"Well, kinda," Lilly replied. "It was like I could feel Miley was worried, but it was somebody else she was worried about. And I just sorta knew it was you. It wasn't exactly like I could _feel _you, not like I can Miles, I just knew it was you that Miley was talking to. Somehow."

Luanne smiled, then she stepped forward and hugged Lilly and Miley both. "I'm just being a wimp. I miss the mountains and woods I grew up in. Going back to the Hollow for Christmas will help a lot."

"Having Ron here would probably help, too, wouldn't it?" asked Lilly.

"Yeah, it would," Luanne admitted. "You know, I think I might fly up to meet him before he comes back here. It might do both of us some good if we saw each other a bit earlier than we had planned."

"You're just missin' the sex," Miley teased, poking her sister in the ribs. The three of them laughed, and now they could all feel the tension ease.

"Yeah, I do miss the sex," Luanne admitted. "But more than the sex, I miss being held by someone who loves me."

"Amen to that," Miley said, leading the other two to the back door. "No other feelin' like that in the world." She opened the door, letting Lilly and Luanne go in first. As Miley went in and pulled the door closed, she nearly ran into Luanne and Lilly, both standing transfixed by what they saw on the couch: Melody and another teenage girl with short black hair and pigtail nubs, kissing quite intently as they held each other on the couch. It looked like Melody was sitting in the other girl's lap, and both of them appeared quite lost in each other.

"HEY!" yelled Miley, making both girls jump and scoot away from each other. "Who the heck are you, and what the heck are you doin' mackin' on my niece?!" she said angrily.

**Author's Afterword:** Hmm. That's a good place to stop for now. Sorry if I'm mean. But at least the updates have been coming a bit sooner, right? Hope you enjoyed it, because there'll be plenty more excitement to come in the next chapter. I had originally planned on getting Mikayla back in this chapter, but it's going to have to be the next one, or this chapter'll go on for another five pages. I'll hurry, I promise. See you soon!

-- Jo --


	10. Chapter 10: Thrown Into Contrast

**Author's Note:** Wow, lots of great reviews! Thanks to all of you, and I'm happy you liked the last chapter. **Bladed Darkness**, I'm pretty sure that clicking noise when Emily kisses Miley on the shoulder is the kiss itself being placed a bit too close to Miley's microphone, resulting in it picking up that faint popping sound just like we hear when someone kisses us too close to our ears. And I had totally missed that pose at the part 5 end/part 6 start! Yeah, Miley's hand is a wee bit low on Em's hip. Okay, it's on her butt, not her hip. And Em doesn't look the least bit stressed about it; in fact, in the actual picture she seems quite happy for her best friend to hold her that way. You go, girls. **Sophi20**, you go right on leaving those long reviews. They're terrific! I also want to thank **KittyKat06** for recognizing that Miley's song "Dream" is actually a cover of Diana DeGarmo's song "Dream, Dream, Dream" from her 2004 album _Blue Skies_. Miley has excellent taste in covers, because I enjoyed her version of "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" as well. **Guitargirl007**, you ROCK for pointing out that interview to all of us! And for the record, my nomination for couple name for them would be...Memily! And **SweetNiblets**, I have to admit I eeped with joy too. I think we all want them to be happy, and they certainly looked happy holding each other. **KrazyNat'**, your review made my whole week. You're exactly right, this is a story of two hearts that truly belong together and a celebration of their love. Thank you for your praise and for reading.

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist or publication mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo P.

Chapter 10: Thrown Into Contrast

_Run run run away, like a train rolling off the track_

_Got the truth being left behind, fall between the cracks_

_Standing on broken dreams, never losing sight_

_Just spread your wings_

_We'll get higher and higher, straight up we'll climb_

_We'll get higher and higher, leave it all behind_

_So baby dry your eyes_

_Save all the tears you've cried_

_Oh, that's what dreams are made of_

_'Cause we belong in a world that must be strong_

_Oh, that's what dreams are made of_

--Van Halen;"Dreams"

"Aunt Miley, I can explain!" shouted Melody Burns as she held her hands up as if to ward off the furious glare that Miley Truscott was casting her way.

"Well, it better be a darn good explanation!" shouted Miley as she advanced on the couch. However, her charge was halted by her wife's strong but gentle grip on her arm.

"Miles," said Lilly calmly, "we had kissed boys when we were thirteen. We were fifteen when we kissed for the first time too, and we went a lot farther than just kissing."

Miley did remember that night well—in fact, she would never forget it, because that was what she thought of as the first night that she began to truly _live_. When she and Lilly quietly made love for the first time in her bed upstairs, they were exploring not only their bodies but their hearts as well, testing the depths of their love for each other and finding no limits whatsoever when it came to each other. On that night their old lives as children ended, and their new lives together began. But that was all much different than their thirteen-year-old niece making out with someone she had just met. "Lilly, sweetie, our situation was different because we had known each other for four years before we made love. We don't even know this girl!"

"I'm Trish," said the girl decked out in a cutoff black t-shirt, cutoff olive drab shorts and short black boots. She stood, shifting from one foot to the other uneasily. Melody stood and moved next to her, getting close but not quite touching the slightly taller girl. "I'm Albert Dontzig's niece. You babysat me one time, and I was a total bitch to you."

"You're Patty?" asked Miley, her jaw dropping. The girl nodded affirmatively, her stubby pigtails atop her head not moving an inch.

"_Really?_" said Lilly, just as stunned. "Make-a-Moose Patty?"

The girl nodded again. "Yeah, but I stopped going by Patty when I was a freshman in high school. I go by Trish now. Patty sounds like a five-year-old."

Miley turned her head back to her thirteen-year-old cousin. "Okay," she said sharply to Melody.

Melody looked confused. "Okay what?" she asked.

"Okay, _explain_," Miley said, waving her hands as a signal for her niece to start talking. "You said you could explain, remember?"

Melody stammered, "W-well..." She turned to look at Trish, and a grin appeared on her face. She turned to look at her aunts again and said, "She's just so _hot!_" as she fanned herself. "I mean, I couldn't help but kiss her!"

Lilly covered her mouth to hide her smile, just as Luanne turned to hide her silent laughter. Even Miley found it hard to keep a straight face at Melody's frank honesty. _Maybe I am being a bit too overprotective_, she though. _But she needs to know that it's not going any farther than small kisses_. Miley felt rather than saw Lilly step up to stand beside her. She turned to look at Lilly, and she could tell by her wife's body language that Lilly was thinking much the same thing. _Let her explore a bit, but not too far. She doesn't need to grow up all the way yet._ Miley smiled at Lilly, and the two of them walked the rest of the way to the couch together. "Okay, you two, sit," said Miley as she and Lilly walked around and stood in front of them.

As Melody and Trish sat, they scooted slightly closer to each other, still not touching but hovering on the edge of contact. Miley glared at both of them, then she said, "We're not your parents, but we need to get a few things straight around here." She turned to look at her wife. "Lil?"

Lilly smiled at Miley, then the smile went away and was replaced by her serious game face. "Like Miley said, we're not your parents, but you two aren't adults, either. I understand you two are attracted to each other, and that's okay to explore that. Believe us, we know. _BUT..._" She looked back at Miley, who picked right up smoothly.

"_BUT_ stuffin' your tongues down each other's throat isn't the kind a' explorin' we're talkin' about!" She turned to look at Lilly. "Wow, that sounded really country, didn't it?" she asked softly, a silly grin on her face.

Lilly nodded. "Yeah, but you're a bit worked up, hon. That happens sometimes." She patted Miley's arm. "It's okay. I think it's adorable."

"Thanks," Miley said as she smiled at her best friend. "Now," she continued as she looked back at the two girls squirming on the couch. "Like I said, we're not your parents, Mel. But we love you and care about you. We understand you're growing up, but don't grow up too fast, please. If you like Pa—Trish, then spend some time with her while you two are here. It'd probably be nice to have a friend more your and Peyton's age to do stuff with, but we expect you to respect us _and_ respect yourself while you're here."

Lilly sat down next to Melody and put her arm around her niece. "Move a little slower, okay Mel? Take the time to talk to somebody first. Get to know them. I know your hormones are all raging inside because you think Trish is cute, but you have to learn to control them, not let them control you."

Melody looked at Lilly skeptically. "So who was in control last night, you or your hormones?" she asked.

Miley laughed once fast before she caught herself, earning her a look from Lilly. "Sorry, sweetheart," Miley said.

Lilly turned to regard her niece again. "We shared control with our hormones last night," she said coolly, fighting to keep a straight face. "Mostly." She paused. "Kind of."

"What happened last night?" asked Trish.

"Oh, they destroyed their bedroom having sex last night," Melody said nonchalantly. "Or at least it sounded like it. Neither Peyton or me could sleep, 'cause we could hear 'em screaming all the way down the hall."

Lilly felt herself flush intensely as the memories of their wild lovemaking rushed back, triggering a surge of love for her wife that made her entire body feel warm. When fingers carefully brushed her left shoulder, she nearly jumped before she realized it was Miley, standing over her.

"It was really good," Miley said with a satisfied grin. "I mean, some of the best ever."

Lilly looked up at Miley. "Yeah," she said right before she yanked Miley down, pulling her girlfriend into her lap. "It was pretty darn amazing."

Trish shook her head. "Okay, this just blows my mind," she said.

Melody turned to look at her new friend. "What does?"

"The way you all talk about two girls, or two women, being together and having sex. Right out in the open, like there's nothing wrong with it."

"There isn't anything wrong with it," Lilly said flatly. "We love each other and we take care of each other. That's what wives are supposed to do for each other. Or a husband and wife, or husbands. That's what loving someone is about. Gender has nothing to do with it."

"Try saying that in my school," Trish said quickly. "I can't count the number of times I've been shoved, spit at, had my books knocked out of my hands, shit put in my locker, you name it."

"And how did you deal with that?" asked Miley.

"I tried to fight back at first, until I realized I couldn't fight the whole school. Then I just tried to creep people out so they'd stay away from me."

"You didn't seem to creep Mel out," Miley said pointedly.

"Nah, I found it sexy," said Melody happily. "Can I hold your hand?" she asked Trish suddenly, sounding like the thirteen-year-old that she was.

Trish turned to look at Melody and smiled. "Yeah, I'd like that," she said. She offered her hand to the slightly younger girl, who very carefully took it and wrapped her fingers partially around it, resting both hands on the couch between them.

Miley and Lilly watched as the two young girls tried to look at anything other than their hands linked together. It was quite innocent, and very touching to the two doting aunts. Miley began to look at Trish in a slightly different light, not hard to do now that she wasn't making out with Melody. "Trish?" Miley said softly.

"Yes? Um... What do I call you?"

"You can call me Miley, or if that's too forward, Mrs. Truscott."

"Okay, thanks. What were you going to say, Miley?"

Miley smiled. She would have been happy with either form of address, because while her first name was more comfortable, she was still quite proud to call herself Mrs. Miley Truscott. "I was going to say that we think it would be okay for you to get to know our niece while you two are both in Malibu, but we expect you to control yourselves. We both think holding hands and hugs is a good start."

"Yeah," said Lilly. "Holding hands and hugging is cool, but no fooling around or anything more than a little kiss. We come in and find you two making out like you were a minute ago, and we whip both of your butts."

Trish looked at the two of them for a moment before she said to Lilly, "How did she know you were going to agree with what she said?"

Lilly smiled confidently as she rested her head on Miley's shoulder. "Because she knows what I want," she said simply.

"You bet your cute butt I do," Miley purred into Lilly's ear, sending tingles of excitement through her lover's body. Melody and Trish both snickered at the exchange and the very obvious response of Lilly's body.

"This is cool," said Trish. "To see two girls that like each other be able to be themselves and not have to worry about anyone getting mad."

"Oh, we've had people get mad at us before," Miley said. "And we've had people do really mean things to us while we were in school, too. But we love each other, and that love was more important than hiding who we were, or being ashamed for loving each other. God made us love each other just like every other couple in love."

"No, He didn't," said Peyton as she walked back into the room, now dressed in a blue tank top and white shorts. "He made you two more in love with each other than any other couple on earth." She bent down to plant a kiss on each of her aunts' heads. "And then He turned you loose to show everybody else what true love was supposed to be. Selfless, honest, and not ashamed of a damn thing."

Miley and Lilly were so touched that neither of them thought to fuss at Peyton for swearing. "Thank you, Pey," whispered Miley as Lilly just nodded, tears filling her eyes.

"You're welcome," said their older niece as she sat down in the large chair next to the couch. "Oh, and Luanne said to tell you that she was going back to her house for a bit. She said she was taking Stella like you three had talked about, and she left her car here."

Faced with the dilemma of a car with only two seats and two young nieces to drive around, Miley and Lilly had arranged for Luanne to drive Stella for a few days, letting her take the travel adapter plug so she could charge the electric Tesla Roadster at her house. Luanne had left her car, a cherry red 2011 Ford Mustang, for Miley and Lilly to drive in the meantime so they would have enough room to ferry Peyton and Melody around. The brand new Tesla Sedan that Miley had ordered was supposed to be delivered in January, plenty of time for them to get used to it before the baby came.

"Hey, Black Alice," said Peyton, pleased when Trish immediately turned to look at her. "You read comic books too?" Peyton asked, surprised that Trish had gotten the reference.

"Sometimes," Trish said, slyly casting a glance at Melody. "Got the idea for this outfit from Black Alice, in fact."

"That's cool," said Melody. "Pey and I read some, too." While Melody looked calm on the outside, inside her heart was pounding so hard that she thought she was going to pass out any second. The electric contact between her hand and Trish's was making her head spin, and when the other girl turned and smiled at her just then, Melody absolutely knew her heart had stopped.

"Breathe," said Trish, a warm smile on her face. "Or you'll pass out."

"I think my sister has it bad," said Peyton, already formulating ways to needle her little sibling about her new crush.

However, Trish wasn't registering any words right now; she was entirely focused on the adorable teenager sitting in front of her whose green eyes, cute face and fetching smile had commanded all her attention. "How do your parents treat you?" she asked Melody softly.

"They treat me like their daughter," said Melody, not understanding what Trish was asking.

"They don't give you a hard time for liking girls?"

"No," said Melody as she shook her head. "I can't help who I am, and they know that. No matter who I like, I'm their daughter. I'll always love them, and they'll always love me."

"I wish I had your parents," Trish said, looking down at the floor until she felt a squeeze on her hand. She looked back up at Melody, who looked quite concerned.

"You have to be strong, Trish," Melody said. "You have to be brave enough to be yourself, to be honest. Just because you're attracted to girls doesn't make you any less of a person, any more than being left-handed, or being a redhead, or being tall, or being short does. It's who you are, and who you are is a beautiful person. We're all beautiful people, we just have to find the courage to open our hearts. That's what I learned from my aunts."

Trish moved her head to look at Miley and Lilly, still sitting on the couch with Miley in Lilly's lap, playing with Lilly's long blonde curls as Lilly held her. "You two would make amazing parents," Trish said. "Well, you know, if you could have kids."

Melody and Peyton laughed so hard that it surprised Trish, making her jump before Melody lifted up her hand and kissed her knuckles. "Trish, Aunt Miley's pregnant. With Aunt Lilly's baby."

"Seriously?" Trish asked, totally surprised.

"Yep," said Miley proudly.

Lilly added, "She's right. Four months pregnant." She patted Miley's belly lightly, then she rubbed it, making Miley giggle and squirm at the slight tickling sensation as Lilly wiggled her fingers while rubbing her wife's belly.

Seeing the confusion on Trish's face, Miley said, "Stem cells. It's a science thing. They took some of Lilly's cells, turned them into stem cells, then turned them into sperm that we used to get me pregnant."

"Shit," swore Trish softly. "So this baby really _is_ yours? I mean, both of yours?"

"Yeah," said Miley, leaning back into Lilly's embrace. Lilly lightly kissed Miley's shoulder as they snuggled together, the very picture of a couple in love. "We wanted to wait until we could really have kids with each other. Nothing donated, nothing from anyone else. I wanted to have her baby, and she wanted to have mine."

"And I will," Lilly said. "Before too long. Maybe two or three years."

"If we've recovered from this one by then," Miley said with a smile. She looked over at Peyton. "You girls want to go for an ice cream?" she asked, grinning madly.

The rest of the afternoon was just as much of a success. Trish found herself welcomed among Melody, Peyton, Miley and Lilly, and as she grew more comfortable she began to show a personality that was both compassionate and vulnerable, something that she had obviously tried very hard to conceal from others.

As Miley and Lilly sat in a wicker chair at Rico's, they watched their nieces and Trish play Frisbee with some other teenagers on the beach. "So what do you think?" asked Miley as she took another bite of Lilly's orange sherbet cone, two big scoops atop the cone.

"I think I like her," said Lilly, watching Trish as she helped Melody up after the younger girl had taken a head-first dive onto the sand. "She didn't exactly make the best first impression on us, but there's more to her than she lets on."

Miley agreed with that assessment completely. "Yeah. She's hiding something."

"Yeah," said Lilly, her mind working. "I wonder if she acts so mean to try and cover up a good heart. Maybe she's been hurt before, by her parents or her friends or something, and she tries to push everybody away so she won't open up again."

"I could see that," said Miley, nodding her head. "But if that's the case, why the heck would she let Mel in?"

Lilly took another bite of the orange ice cream before she answered. "Miley," she said with her mouth still partly full, "this is _Mel_. She could charm a leprechaun into giving up his pot of gold."

Miley grinned as she saw Melody sneak a quick kiss from Trish as they rolled on the sand together. If any of their new friends noticed, no one said or did anything negative. "She does have that effect on people, doesn't she?"

"She sure does." Lilly thought for a bit longer. Finally she said, "Do think maybe she's scared of something? Of something bad happening if she's honest with everybody else? Or do you think she's scared of being honest with herself?"

"Not talking about Mel now, I take it," Miley said, glancing at her wife's blue eyes.

"Smart woman," said Lilly teasingly. "Hey!" she said loudly when Miley gobbled down the last of the orange sherbet with one massive bite. "Don't stuff your cheeks!"

It took Miley several seconds to chew and swallow the ice cream, but she soon said, "Oh, you're one to talk!" as she teasingly poked her wife on the shoulder. Then she looked off across the ocean for long seconds as they just held each other. Finally she said, "I think she's scared of being honest with herself. She's done something in the past that she's trying hard to cover up, to make up for, but she's still scared that whatever she's done is gonna come out. And if it does, it could ruin everything she wants. Everything she has."

Lilly looked at Miley's profile, her blue eyes dancing across the face she loved more than life itself. "Now we're not talking about Trish either, are we?" she asked softly.

Miley turned to look at her wife, who was far, far more perceptive than most people gave her credit for. "No, we're not," she said, smiling sadly. "I think she hates me so much because I can be honest about myself, and she can't. Not about whatever it is that she's ashamed of."

"And she hates me for the same thing."

"Yes. Plus she hates us both even more because we have each other."

"Yeah, and all she has is that bitch of a manager. She's mean to her, too."

Miley thought about what Jen had told them several weeks ago, about the conversation she had overheard between Mikayla and Margot backstage at the _Mack and Mickey in the Morning_ show. "It sounds like they're both using each other, from what Jen said. But I'm not sure about that."

"Well, I'm not going to put up with her being mean to you, sweetheart," Lilly said firmly. "I don't care what she's done or what she's hiding, if she gets ugly with you or threatens you, then I'll—"

"Yes," said Miley, interrupting Lilly with a quick kiss. "I know you will, and I love you for protecting me, lover girl." Miley rested her head on Lilly's shoulder. "I know you always will."

"Part of my job," said Lilly proudly. "You do okay on your test this afternoon?"

"Yeah," said Miley. "Just took about an hour. Thanks for watching them while I was doing it."

"We had fun walking around the campus. I think Peyton was practically taking notes."

"You think she might want to come out here for school?" asked Miley, surprised.

Lilly sniffed a lock of Miley's chestnut hair, smiling at the familiar scent of Miley and oranges. "She might. At least that was the impression I got."

"Maybe she thinks she might pick up a boyfriend as fast as Mel picked up a girlfriend." Both of them laughed lightly at that, then they resumed watching their nieces playing with their new friends.

When Lilly's phone rang, she sighed loudly. "You answer it, Miles," she said tiredly. "Since you got the last of the ice cream."

Miley reached into Lilly's pocket and fished out the purple phone, flipping it open. "Hello? Lilly's busy being lazy, but I can help you." Miley smiled at the reply, then she said to Lilly, "It's Jen."

Lilly held out her hand, then she playfully snatched the phone away from her best friend. "Hey Jen," she said cheerily. "Any luck?" Lilly listened, smiling for a bit then looking slightly puzzled. "Okay," she finally said. "We'll call you back when we get there." She snapped the phone closed and looked at her curious wife. "Jen tracked down Kylee Dean. She's in Las Vegas, and she said she'd be happy to hook us up with two dresses whenever we got there."

"Yay," said Miley softly, smiling at Lilly. "What else did she say?"

"She said she had some really good news, but that she wouldn't tell us unless we were at home."

Now it was Miley's turn to look confused. "Well, that's weird," she finally said. "But she said it was good news?"

Lilly nodded. "I want to hear what it is."

"Me too." Miley carefully stood up, helping Lilly up with her. She turned to the beach and whistled loudly, getting the attention of pretty much everyone with Peyton, Melody and Trish. Miley waved for them to come on; she was pleasantly surprised when all three of them said goodbye to the others and began walking their way.

"We need to head back home," Miley said. "It's gettin' late."

"Aunt Miley!" Melody said. "It's only eight!"

Miley fixed her niece with a intimidating stare. "Mel," she said carefully, "we've had a good day, and you've gotten to spend lots of time with your new girlfriend."

Trish quickly looked at Melody. "Am I...?" she asked.

"Yeah," said Melody with a smile. "You are. If you want to be."

Trish smiled back and put her arm around Melody, making the younger girl shiver. "I want to be," Trish said.

Miley's voice interrupted any further discussion. "Now, it's time for us to walk Trish home, and then we can decide what to do tomorrow."

As the five of them began the walk back to their houses, Lilly caught a glimpse of something black on Peyton's hand. She pointed at her niece's hand and said, "What's that?"

Peyton looked up and immediately turned red. "Well..." she said, holding up her hand to reveal a string of numbers. "I kinda got that one boy's phone number. You know, the cute one with the necklace?"

Lilly smiled and shook her head. "You know, we think can handle anything out here in California, but we're just no match for you Tennessee girls," she said as she hugged her niece.

"You know it," said Peyton with a grin, putting her own arm around her aunt as they walked.

Several miles away in Los Angeles, Mikayla slipped into her manager's new office in the Dyseni Records building. The meeting was still going strong, but she had tolerated as much of the poorly disguised bickering and deceit as she could. She pulled out a prepaid cell phone she had bought a few days ago, when she had slipped out without any escorts. She had gotten a real chewing out when she got back, but Margot was so busy blasting her that she didn't even think to check her purse. Mikayla locked the door, then she typed in a string of digits that made her hand shake slightly.

As the phone rang, she felt herself suddenly feeling very small and very young... and she didn't like feeling that way.

"_Hello?"_ said a male voice on the end of the line.

"Petey?" she asked, surprised that she had gotten lucky right off the bat. "Can you talk?"

"_Mickey?"_ Surprise in the voice, as well as a fair amount of hesitance.

"Yeah, Petey, it's me. Listen, I won't take too long. I wanted to tell you that the new album went gold today." _It only took five weeks, which is about three weeks longer than these pricks here wanted. Bunch of self-righteous bastards._

"_That's great, Mickey."_ There was a pause before the next question. _"So, um, how are you doing?"_

She sighed. No good way to answer that way, and she knew it. "I'm fine," she said simply, opting for the easy lie rather than the messy truth. "Listen, I got a bonus check today. I'm sending some money to the post office box. You still have it, right?"

"_Yeah, we've still got it, but—"_

"No buts, Petey. You may be bigger than me now, but I'm still your big sister. I'm overnighting the check to you tomorrow, so it'll be there in two days. Take it and put it in yours and Mona's account, and don't fucking tell Papa _anything_, you got me?"

Petey laughed, but no humor made it through to Mikayla. _"I'm no idiot, Mickey. I know better than to do that. Haven't even talked to him in a couple weeks, anyway."_ He hesitated, then he asked, _"Why are you doing this, Mickey?"_

Mikayla closed her eyes to stop any tears from forming, and it took her long seconds before she felt she could control her voice long enough to answer. "To make sure you, Mona, and Esmeralda are taken care of, Petey. You know that."

"_Bullshit. And we both know it."_

"Petey, you know I care about all of you! I—"

"_Then get out of that place, Mickey! It almost killed you before, and how long did it take you to pick up the pieces?"_

The conversation was veering into dangerous territory. It needed to stop quickly. "Petey, part of it _is_ me wanting to make sure you three are taken care of. The rest is..." _Me being stupid. Paying for past mistakes._ "Complicated."

"_Then uncomplicate it."_

"I can't," she said simply, and she knew that was the truth. "Bye, Petey. I love you and the girls. Get Mona that new car she needs with some of that money, okay?" She hung up before he could answer. She quickly popped the back off of the phone and removed the battery and the SIMM card, then she threw the rest of the phone into the trash can, burying it under what was already in the wastebasket. She stuffed the battery and SIMM card in her pocket, then she stepped back out into the hall.

As she was walking toward the boardroom, the doors opened to disgorge a mass of executives that she had barely met. Two or three of them she recognized from working with them or seeing them with Margot, but for the others she just smiled and tried to look pretty. As she reached the end of the hall, she turned to examine the new picture hanging on the wall. While the picture hung where Hannah Montana's large portrait had been situated previously, it seemed to Mikayla that her portrait was just slightly smaller than her blonde enemy's had been. She wondered if that had been done on purpose, either to motivate her or irritate her. At this point, she wouldn't put much of anything past Margot. But the woman had major connections still, and she knew how to get her way. If Mikayla was going to dethrone Hannah Montana, she still needed the hateful woman's help. Not that she could say no even if she wanted to.

As Miley unlocked the door to let Peyton, Melody and Lilly into the house, she saw Lilly was already dialing Jen's number. By the time she had closed and relocked the door, Lilly had plopped herself down on the couch. Their nieces had wandered into the kitchen to feed their bottomless stomachs, so Miley sat down beside her best friend and curled her legs up underneath herself as she waited for Lilly's call to go through.

"Hey, Jen?" said Lilly. "It's, um, Lola. So what's the good news?"

"_Well, you tell me what you want to hear first. Good news, great news, or unfucking believably good news?"_

Lilly snickered at their friend's typical brusque manner. "Let's go in that order, I guess," she said.

"_Okay, the good news is that the Grammy nominations are being announced in the morning, and I've heard that Hannah is going to be nominated for four categories."_

"Oh, yay!" Lilly said happily as she grabbed Miley's hand. "She thinks Hannah is going to be nominated for four Grammy awards, hon."

"Oh shoot, that's tomorrow they announce the nominees, isn't it?" Miley said, astonished that she forgotten that fact already. "Maybe your woman can bring home some new bling for the trophy case, hon," Miley said as she leaned forward to kiss Lilly on the temple.

"Okay, if that's just the good news, Jen, what the heck's the great news?" Lilly asked.

"_Well,"_ said Jen, _"I've gotten the final drafts of some of the critics' reviews of _Above and Beyond_. Want to hear them?"_

"No," said Lilly quickly. "I mean, yes. I mean, tell Miley!" She handed her surprised wife the phone, motioning for her to listen to their manager.

"What are you telling me and not telling my wife, Jen?" asked Miley, an equal mix of confused and curious at this point.

"_Reviews for Lola's new movie. Let's see... _Entertainment Weekly_ gives it an A. _People_ gives it four stars. _Premiere_ is bragging it up and down the pages, _Moviewatch_ is rating it a 9 out of 10, and even that stupid bitch of a critic at _USA Today_ is giving it three stars. All in all, it sounds like Lola Montana might just have a hit on her hands."_

Lilly could tell by the grin on Miley's face that Jen wasn't joking about the news being even better. "Okay, tell me!" she finally said, grabbing Miley's thigh.

"Jen says the reviews for your movie are through the roof," Miley said. "Honey, I told you that you did the best job I've ever seen in a movie. When are you gonna learn to listen to me?" Miley rolled her eyes with her last statement.

"_Okay, ready to hear the _really_ fucking good news?"_

Miley was surprised; she hadn't realized there was more good news. "Uh, sure," she said.

"_How much do you know about football?"_

Miley winced slightly as she remembered her high school days. "I know enough about football to know that I suck at it."

"_Well, suck at it or not, can I talk you into going to a football game in February?"_

Miley was confused now. "Why would you want me to go to a football game in February?" she asked. "I mean, haven't they quit playing by then?" Suddenly she felt Lilly put a death grip on her thigh; she looked over to see a look on Lilly's face that suggested she was choking. "What is it, Lil?" she asked, her voice concerned.

"Miley," Lilly said, not releasing her wife's leg, "there's only one football game in February!" Seeing that Miley still didn't get it, Lilly yelled, "The Super Bowl!"

"_Yep, your wife's right. The NFL wants you to sing during halftime at the Super Bowl. I already told them yes, so you better show your ass up."_

"Okay!" said Miley. "I think we can manage to be there." She paused, then she said, "Thanks for doing such a great job for us, Jen. We really appreciate it."

"_Don't mention it. I got two tickets for Lee and me to go with you two. That'll win me some big points at home."_

Lilly smiled as she reached up and ran her fingers through Miley's thick, gorgeous hair. "Singing at the Super Bowl, huh? Just when I didn't think I could get any more proud of my amazingly talented wife." She paused, then she said, "But we need to get the movie premiere worked out first, hon. How are we going to get the girls their dresses from Las Vegas to here in two days? I mean, we don't even have their measurements to send to Kylee."

Now it was Miley's turn to smile mysteriously. "Just leave that one to me, Lilly Bear. Hannah has it covered."

Lilly looked into her wife's eyes for long seconds, then she finally smiled and put her arms around Miley's neck, then she stretched forward to kiss her wife on the lips. She trusted Miley to make things work, plus she had her suspicions about what her wife was planning. "What the heck," she said. "This _is_ their first trip to California. We might as well give them something to remember, right?"

Miley patted Lilly's knee. "That's my baby," she said. "Hey Jen?" she said into the phone, making sure their manager was still listening. "We need to get a few things set up." She glanced over at Peyton and Melody, who were in the kitchen putting glasses into the dishwasher. "Have them get the Hannah Jet ready to fly. We've got some things to do."

As Mikayla stepped into her new house, she waited for the security guard on duty to complete his sweep of the building. It was located in Beverly Hills, but Margot had insisted that Mikayla have on-site security to prevent any overzealous fans from causing trouble. "More likely she just wants to keep me in sight at all times," the twenty-one-year-old grumbled to herself. When the security guard finished turning on the lights and checking all sixteen rooms in the large Spanish-style home, Mikayla dismissively waved him out, locking the door behind him. She looked around the large central area, gazing at the large fountain in the center of the entrance foyer for a minute or two before walking into the sunken living room. She fell down into the large couch with a happy sigh, stretching her arms and legs blissfully.

She looked around the quiet room, hoping that her new television would be delivered tomorrow. It was quiet in the large house, almost depressingly so. Before she even realized her train of thought, Mikayla found herself wondering what Hannah Montana, the target of her hatred, did at her home. _Besides screw around with her little fuck buddy, of course. They've been pretty open about that for a long time, and somehow her fans are okay with that._ Mikayla hadn't been nearly as lucky when it came to finding a boyfriend. The ones the studio kept arranging for her to meet all had some kind of problem that she didn't want to have to deal with, usually an ego as big as hers and an inflated sense of self-importance to match.

She had only been in this house for two days, and she had already found herself missing her family at least a dozen times despite the fact that she hadn't really spoken to most of them for several years. Once again she found her thoughts drifting back to the singer with long blonde hair and a smile to match her honeyed voice. _What kind of family do you have, Hannah? Do they still love you, or are you just a walking money machine to them? Is your house dark and quiet at night, or is it happy and bright like a real home?_

"Quit being stupid, Mickey," she said to herself as she stood. "You knew there would be a price to pay for being a star again, and you were more than happy to pay it. This is what you always wanted, and once you push Hannah off her pedestal there's no one who can keep you from being number one." Somehow the words didn't seem as reassuring as she had intended them to be, though. She walked to the bedroom, uneasy in her own dwelling because it just felt so empty. "That'll change," she said to herself, forcing a smile onto her face. Maybe a party this coming weekend would help, to get things broken in.

She took a long bath in the large jacuzzi tub, spending extra time on washing and conditioning her hair as she listened to the radio. Her current single played before she was done with her bath, and hearing her name mentioned made her smile pleasantly. Finally she was ready for bed. She turned off the light and crossed the distance from the bathroom to her bed, sliding into the cool sheets in the dark.

However, before sleep could claim her she found herself uneasy. As lonely as she had felt before, the size of this house made that loneliness worse somehow. She reached across the bed, telling herself that it was only to feel how much room she had, but that wasn't why she reached out for someone who wasn't there. She closed her eyes tighter, trying desperately to think about something, about _anything_ except the real reason she hated Hannah and Lola Montana—they would never be alone, because they loved each other and would always have each other. And once again Mikayla despised them even more.

It was two hours before she finally fell asleep, and the tear stains on her pillowcase made that sleep a restless one.

Three hours later it was all Peyton and Melody could do to stay buckled in their seats as the private jet accelerated away from the ground. They had their faces pressed to the window, watching the lights of Los Angeles drop away beneath them. "So where are we goin'?" asked Melody as she turned to look at her aunts. When she saw Lola Montana sitting in Hannah Montana's lap, she still jumped slightly. Even knowing that the stars were secretly her aunts didn't entirely offset the shock of being this close to two celebrities she had adored for most of her life.

"Las Vegas," said Lilly, a content smile on her face as she curled against her wife's chest, careful to not lean against Miley's abdomen. "To get you two some dresses for the movie premiere in two days."

"Almost one day now, hon," Miley said, looking at her watch. "We're gonna get some sleep first when we touch down, then we'll meet up with Kylee and get your dresses made. That work for you two?"

"Sure," said Peyton, just as impressed as her sister that her aunts were even cooler than she had previously believed... which she hadn't thought was possible, honestly. "We gettin' a motel room somewhere?"

Lilly giggled as Miley did much the same, pressing their foreheads together in a gesture that seemed oddly adolescent but still completely in character for both them and their alter egos. "You could say that," said Miley.

"Ever since our first trip to Las Vegas together, we've had a soft spot for the Venetian," Lilly said. "After all, it was where we told everyone that we were in love, and where we proposed to each other."

"And where Hannah and Lola went on their first public date," added Miley. "We've stayed in other hotels when we've gone to Vegas, but whenever we can we like to stay there. So they're setting us up with one of their suites for tonight and tomorrow, until we fly back out."

"So how are you two gonna explain having two tag-alongs with you?" asked Melody. "I mean, I know you've got some kinda plan, or you wouldn't be takin' us along like this."

Lilly smiled at their younger niece. "We're going to tell everyone that you two won a contest to spend some time with us." She turned to look at Miley. "What were we going to call it?"

"The Montanas' Movie Contest," said Miley. "And of course your Aunt Lilly and Aunt Miley came along with us, too."

"Yeah," said Lilly with a sly grin, "but they're too camera shy to be in any pictures. I mean, some people already know that they're friends with Hannah and Lola, but they want to keep that stuff quiet so they don't get swarmed with reporters asking questions."

Melody nodded as she looked at her sister. "They're pretty good at this," she admitted.

Peyton grinned back. "Looks like it, don't it?" she replied. She leaned back in her seat and yawned. "Okay, it's pretty late to me, so just wake me up long enough to get into the car when we get there, alright?"

Miley and Lilly shared a sneaky look. "We can just have Roxy carry you both," Miley said.

Peyton and Melody looked at other. "Who's Roxy?" asked Peyton nervously.

"You'll see," said Miley before she tucked her wife's head against her own and closed her eyes for a quick rest.

Neither Peyton nor Melody remembered much about landing at the airport, or the limousine ride to the Venetian. In fact, they couldn't remember much of anything except riding on a little cart of some sort through a noisy hallway, then getting onto an elevator of some sort. It was only when they stirred from sleep the next morning that they realized this hadn't been a dream, with the lavish decor in the massive suite confirming that they were no longer at their aunts' house in Malibu.

"Peyton?" whispered Melody. "Where are we, Pey?"

Peyton sat up and looked around. Then she looked down, because she didn't remember putting on a silk nightgown. In fact, she didn't think she _owned_ a silk nightgown, particularly one in a rosy pink hue. She threw the covers off of them and stood quickly. She hurried to the door to their room, peeking out into the larger room as Melody huddled behind her.

"When did you get this nightgown, Pey?" asked Melody. "Oh man, I want to borrow it some—"

"Shhh," whispered Peyton. "Where are Miley and Lilly?"

"They're in the room over there, probably," her sister said, pointing at the open door across the main room. "I remember them making sure we were in bed before they turned out the lights."

"Why don't I remember that?"

Melody poked her older sister in the back, getting a jump forward. "Because you conked out on us. I woke up when Miley was getting my nightgown on, and I saw Lilly getting yours on." She looked around the bedroom. "Don't see our clothes, though." She saw Peyton leave the bedroom, heading across the huge open space of the main section of the suite. Quickly she hurried after her sister, catching up with her as they peeked into the other bedroom.

At first glance it looked like no one had even turned the bed down, which surprised both girls. Then they could see a single bulge underneath the covers. It had been camouflaged by the pillows scattered across the rest of the bed, but now they could see what looked like someone sleeping on the far side of the king-sized bed. Silently they crept across the room, until they could see their aunts sleeping peacefully in the bed.

In contrast to the fiery night of lovemaking of the previous evening, Miley and Lilly were curled together in slumber so peaceful that it could have come straight out of a fairy tale. Miley was on her back, her left arm around Lilly as the blonde's head nuzzled against Miley's left cheek, Lilly's lips so close that they might have been brushing against Miley's warm skin. Lilly's left arm fell across Miley's chest, holding her best friend tightly as her left hand gripped Miley's shoulder securely. Their hair had blended together through the night, suggesting that their bodies might have moved during the night, but their faces had never been apart. And on each face was a look of bliss, of joy so strong and pure that it made both Peyton and Melody shiver.

"I want a love like that so bad that it hurts," whispered Peyton.

"So do I," agreed Melody. "I pray for it every night."

"Me too," said Peyton softly. "Me too, Mel." She turned to look at her sister. "You think this fancy hotel has room service?" she asked with a smile.

Melody returned her grin. "I sure do," she said. "Let's go see what we can get 'em to bring up for breakfast."

As the teenagers stole back out of their aunts' bedroom, they missed seeing a single blue eye watching them leave the room. That one eye was then joined by its companion as Miley lifted her head and made sure they were alone again before she whispered to Lilly, "Hey baby," getting a soft mumble in reply. "Hey hon," she tried again. "Peyton and Mel were just in here checkin' on us."

Lilly sleepily stretched her limbs except for her left arm, which remained firmly gripping her wife's right shoulder. "Hope they didn't freak out too bad when they woke up," Lilly said slowly.

"Didn't hear 'em scream," said Miley as she turned to face Lilly, shifting her grip onto her wife's hip. "So they couldn't have been too scared. But for a minute I thought they were gonna crawl into bed with us, like they used to do when they were little."

_Lilly nearly jumped out of bed when she felt a third body in the bed with her and Miley. It was Christmas Eve in Misty Hollow, and Lilly was quite sure that it had just been Miley and her when they went to bed._

"_Lilly?" asked Miley sleepily. "What's wrong, hon?"_

"_Somebody's in bed with us!" Lilly hissed. She turned over to find nine-year-old Melody cuddled up next to her, sleeping peacefully. "Oh, it's Mel," she said quietly. Lilly had never been this close to a sleeping child, since she was the youngest in her family, so she took a moment to study the adorable expression on the girl's face. It looked like she was concentrating intently on something, but as Lilly watched the intense expression of her mouth and lips softened into a gentle smile. "She's so cute," Lilly found herself saying as she felt her best friend wrap her arms against her naked body and pull her against Miley's own nude body._

"_You make faces like that when you're asleep, you know," Miley said._

"_Really?" asked Lilly, turning to look over her shoulder at her best friend who was holding her securely._

_Miley nodded. "Yup. And I think it's cute, too."_

_Lilly ran her hands through the little girl's hair, already nearly jet black and lustrous in its sheen. "Do you think she's gonna freak out when she realizes we don't have on any clothes?" she asked carefully, hoping that no one would be upset that Melody had gotten into bed with them._

_Miley kissed Lilly's ear carefully, taking care to not be too loud for Lilly's hearing. "Hon, they realized that we usually don't sleep with clothes on a long time ago. I heard them askin' Aunt Dolly about it one mornin'."_

_Lilly nearly choked at that statement. "What did she do?"_

"_You mean besides turn bright red?"_

_That thought brought a soft laugh to Lilly's lips. "Yeah, besides that."_

_Miley paused, apparently trying to remember. "Well, she told Mel and Pey that we were in love and that we were gonna be married really soon, and that sometimes it was more comfortable for people to sleep without any clothes on."_

"_And they didn't freak?"_

_Miley lifted her head up to look over Lilly's prone figure. "Apparently not."_

_Lilly lifted up as well, and now she could spot Peyton next to her sister, a similar expression of comfort on her face. "Wow," she said, considering the fact that their young "nieces" were so comfortable around them. "You know, that's really cool, that they like us so much." She reached out and patted Peyton on the head, being as careful to not wake her up as she had been with Melody. "I love them calling us their aunts, you know."_

_Miley smiled at how easily her family and Lilly had accepted each other, as if they had always been a part of each other. Maybe they had been, in some way. "I love it too," Miley finally said when she could trust her voice not to waver._

Lilly snickered as she remembered those winter mornings in Misty Hollow, just like Miley was doing. "Well, we wore pajamas to bed last night, so they wouldn't have been embarrassed," she said.

Miley snorted. "Like they were ever embarrassed before at crawling into bed with us when we were completely naked."

"Good point." Lilly thought about how comfortable their nieces had always been with them being together, and where that acceptance had to come from. "You think..."

"That maybe they're so comfortable with us because we're so comfortable with each other?" Miley finished.

Lilly smiled. "Yeah. That's what I was thinking. I mean, loving you is the most natural thing in the world for me, Miles," Lilly said as she kissed her best friend on the lips. "I hope that we've given them a good example of what love should be."

"You sure as heck have," said a voice from the doorway. Miley and Lilly sat up to see Peyton leaning against the door frame. "But you've kinda spoiled us, too. Mel and me, we both want that amazing connection that you two have with each other, but I'm not sure if we'll find it. What you two have is... unique, I guess."

"Someone will find your heart, Pey," said Miley, extending her arm that wasn't around Lilly to hug her niece. Peyton crossed the room quickly, and she fell into the hug of her aunt. She felt Lilly wrap her own free arm around her, and being enveloped in the love and warmth from the two of them made the concerns and fears of adolescence fade away temporarily.

"Hey, don't leave me out!" cried Melody, right before she landed on the bed with a thump.

"We wouldn't leave you out, Melly," said Lilly as she gathered in the thirteen-year-old who was suddenly eight again, hugging her tightly.

"We went ahead and ordered some breakfast," Peyton said. "And we got lots for Aunt Lilly, but we told them it was for Hannah and Lola. We didn't use your real names."

Miley smiled as she and Lilly hugged the little girls who weren't so little any more. "Thanks," she said. "And not just for the breakfast, but also for protecting our secret."

Peyton grinned. "It's going to cost you," she said with a smirk. "What kind of stores do they have here?"

Lilly quickly looked at Miley. "You've spoiled her," she said.

"Me?" said Miley quickly.

"Uh huh. You."

Rather than banter any more, Miley instead leaned forward and kissed Lilly. They released their nieces and fell backwards onto the bed, holding each other as they kissed. Peyton and Melody both sat up and sighed happily as they watched their aunts kiss. "Wow, that's _so_ romantic," said Peyton. "How they're so into each other."

Melody nodded her head. "I remember when they'd do that to make us run away, because we thought it was gross, grown-ups kissing."

Peyton playfully pushed her younger sister over onto the far side of the bed. "It looked like your new girlfriend helped you get over that," she said teasingly.

Melody blushed as she sat back up. "I like her, Pey. There's just something about her..."

"Besides the fact that you think she's hot?" Peyton noticed that Melody wasn't as quick to reply as was usual for her, and as she looked at her sister's face she could see that this might not be the best approach for this particular subject. "Mel, I just don't want you to get swept up by an older girl and get hurt, or talked into doing something you're not ready to do just yet." She took her sister's hand and held it carefully. "It's my job to look out for you. I'm your older sister."

"I know, Pey," Melody said. "And I appreciate it, I really do. But looking at Trish just makes my insides tingle and go numb. And when we kissed, it was like little lights went off in my head." She looked at Peyton. "I don't think she's gonna hurt me. And she didn't make the first move on me."

"What?" asked Peyton, her eyes jerking back up to look at her sister.

"Yeah, I, um, kinda made the first move on her," Melody confessed. "But like I said, she was so cute, and so sexy, and something about being out here on vacation just made me want to kiss her. So I, uh, went for it."

"Guess we'll have to keep a closer eye on you then!" said a voice right before a thick, soft pillow smacked into Melody's head, knocking her back down onto the large bed. Lilly was on her knees, grinning madly as she held her pillow in position to deliver another blow to Melody's head. "Little flirt."

Peyton nearly rolled off the bed laughing at the expression on Melody's face. However, the shock quickly turned into amusement, and soon Melody was laughing as well.

"Nice one, Aunt Lilly," she said, trying to keep Lilly distracted as she surreptitiously reached for a pillow with her right hand, which happened to be directly behind Lilly. But right as she gripped the corner of a pillow, she felt strong fingers encircle her wrist.

"What were you plannin' on doin' with that pillow, little girl?" asked Miley as she lay down across the pillow, pinning Melody's arm in place.

Lilly reached back with her left hand and patted Miley's head, finding it on the first try without so much as a glance behind her. "We're a team, remember?" Lilly said, smirking at her niece. "Now we're going to get in the shower, so you two need to be listening for room service to get up here."

"Yes ma'am," said Melody, admitting defeat. Two on one wasn't good odds, especially when it was her aunts. Oh well. She could always get them back later. She released the pillow and tugged her arm free from underneath Miley. The three of them stood, joined by Peyton, who had previously stood up to get a better view of the pillow fight. Or maybe she had stood to get in better position to tackle Lilly. Peyton was good at hiding her intentions, after all.

As they walked by the large bathroom in the master bedroom, Peyton suddenly whirled and looked at her aunts. "Hey, ya'll enjoy your shower sex, okay?" she said gleefully before she turned and raced out into the rest of the suite, finally throwing herself down onto the large couch in front of a large plasma television. Melody giggled at the expressions on her aunts' faces as she said, "Looks like you didn't see that one comin', huh?"

Lilly put on an expression of disbelief as she said, "You know, Miley and I _don't_ think about jumping each other all the time!" Miley leaned in and whispered something in Lilly's ear, causing the slightly shorter blonde to blush furiously. Lilly turned and walked into the bathroom, getting a light smack on her butt from Miley as she did so.

Miley turned to look at her nieces, both of whom looked like they didn't believe a word Lilly had just said. Miley shrugged her shoulders, then patted her slightly enlarged belly. "Hormones," she said as she opened the door to the bathroom, steam from the shower beginning to spill out onto the floor. "What can you do with 'em?" She grinned and went into the bathroom, closing the door behind her.

**Author's Afterword:** Wow, that chapter went fast! Lots more fun stuff is shaping up, and we're still very early in this story! At this point I'm going to guess that this story is going to run roughly forty chapters. Yeah, I know that's an insane number, but there's an awful lot I want to get into this one. Next chapter will get us to the actual movie premiere and bring us one step closer to another Misty Hollow Christmas. See you soon!

-- Jo --


	11. Chapter 11: Just Breathe

**Author's Note:** My sincere apologies for this chapter taking so long; I spent a week on the second chapter of "Broken Wings," and that left me with just a week to shift gears completely and write this chapter.

I want to take just a moment to address an important review that brought up a very real and serious subject of sexual abuse. I certainly didn't want to give the impression that Miley and Lilly would be so casual as to walk around naked in front of their young nieces. In fact, that would have mortified them. When they slept in their room at Ruthie's, Miley and Lilly always tried to lock the door before they went to bed, just in case any curious seven- or eight-year-olds decided to try to sneak in their room at night. Unfortunately, Peyton and Melody know how to pick the locks on the admittedly simple interior doors in Mamaw Ruthie's house, and that was how they slipped into bed with Miley and Lilly one night when the two older girls were sleeping nude. From that point on, Miley and Lilly always put on pajamas or nightclothes of some sort whenever Peyton and Melody were also sleeping over at Ruthie's house, just for the odd occasions when the two girls would get scared and crawl into bed with their aunts. Miley and Lilly would never do anything untoward or improper to any children, especially their nieces whom they love very much, and I sincerely hope no one thought that was the case. If I bothered anyone by not further clarifying in that last chapter, please accept my apologies.

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist or publication mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo P.

Chapter 11: Just Breathe

_'Cause I can feel you breathe_

_It's washing over me_

_Suddenly I'm melting into you_

_There's nothing left to prove_

_Baby, all we need is just to be_

_Caught up in the touch_

_The slow and steady rush_

_Baby, isn't that the way love's supposed to be?_

_I can feel you breathe_

_Just breathe_

--Faith Hill;"Breathe"

"_Did you see me hit that one, Momma?"_

_Luanne took a second to realize she was in a clearing in the woods, facing what looked like a shooting range built in front of a large hill. She turned to look at the little boy who had just spoke, and as she looked at him she felt her chest swell with happiness. Somehow, she knew that this boy who couldn't be more than eight or nine was her son._

"_Yes, baby, I saw that," she said happily. She saw that he was carefully holding a small .22 caliber rifle, keeping it pointed at the ground and his finger away from the trigger. She smiled as she looked at the electronic earmuffs covering his ears, and she reached up to feel a pair on her head as well. They amplified the wearer's hearing until a loud noise occurred, then they blocked it out, making it possible to carry on a conversation while wearing them without damaging the wearer's hearing._

_She walked over to the little boy, who smiled up at her. "I'm gonna be the best rifle shot in the whole holler!" he said proudly. "Even better than my cousins!"_

_As Luanne realized who those cousins would be, she smirked. "You think you can shoot better than those girls, huh?" she asked, taking a glance down the range at where four plastic bottles still stood upright atop a long wooden plank twenty-five yards away._

"_I know I can shoot better 'n those silly girls! Boys can always shoot better than girls, 'cause they're too busy playin' with their dolls!"_

_Luanne smiled and picked up the lever-action rifle lying on the shooting table next to them. She shouldered the rifle as she loaded and cocked it in one smooth motion, easily shooting the first bottle off the stand. Without removing the rifle from her shoulder, she smoothly worked the lever action, ejecting the empty casing, loading the next cartridge and cocking the gun again. She shot the second bottle off, then the third, then the fourth. When she was done she let the rifle drop to her side, keeping it pointed away from her son._

"_Whoa," said the amazed boy. "I didn't know you could shoot like that, Momma!"_

"_Still think boys can shoot better than girls?" Luanne asked him._

_He thought for a moment, then he grinned and nodded. "Yup, 'cause you're not a girl, you're my momma!"_

_Luanne laughed at his logic. His sandy blonde hair, even hidden beneath a toboggan, was most definitely Ron's, but his inquisitive expression and his cool blue eyes were definitely Luanne's. Even though they were the same color as those of his father's, there was something about the boy's eyes that just made Luanne know that they were from her. "Come on," she said as she bent over and picked up the four empty shells from her rifle. "Let's get this stuff picked up."_

"_Okay," the boy said. "Then can we go back to the house and make some hot chocolate?" he asked excitedly._

"_Well, of course!" Luanne answered, nearly laughing at how he flew into picking up the plastic bottles and tossing them into the large rubber trash can next to the shooting bench. Luanne glanced into the trash bin and saw that everything in it was plastic, paper or cardboard, all easily recyclable. She took a moment to look around the woods, judging that they were in Tennessee from the varieties of trees she could see and steep hills surrounding them._

"_Okay, I'm ready!" the boy said, handing his rifle to Luanne. _

_She checked it and saw that it was a single-shot bolt-action rifle. She opened the bolt and saw that it was indeed empty, so she closed the bolt and handed it back to him. "Keep it pointed away from anybody or anything, even if you know it's empty."_

"_Yes, ma'am." He took the rifle and held it against his shoulder as if he was marching in a parade, prompting Luanne to stifle a giggle at how cute he looked. She picked up the shooting bag and slung her own rifle over her shoulder by the shoulder strap._

_Not quite sure as to where they were going, she let her son take the lead. He confidently took them through the woods, following a path that quickly became clear to Luanne as they walked. After a few minutes they emerged from the woods into a large field, bordered by a stream that ran out of the woods. Luanne continued to follow her son until she could see a large wooden house, a dark brown that looked very much at home next to the woods around it. _

_As they approached the house, Luanne realized that she had never seen this house, and she was sure that she knew every house in Misty Hollow. But before she could think any more about where exactly they might be, she felt little arms wrap around her legs._

"_I love our house, Momma," he said, hugging Luanne tightly._

_Luanne felt tears come to her eyes as she saw Ron waving at them from an upstairs window. She waved back with one hand as she hugged her son back with her free arm. "I love it too, baby. Just like I love you and your daddy."_

As Luanne reentered the waking world, she smiled at how good it felt to have her husband holding her tightly. She had flown up to meet him in New York yesterday, and she was pleased at how good her sister and sister-in-law's advice had been. Seeing Ron again had lifted her spirits immensely, banishing much of the loneliness back to the shadows of her mind. But now this dream...

She carefully slid out from under the sheets, trying her best not to wake her husband as she fished through her purse for her phone.

"Where are you going?" Ron mumbled with a sleepy voice as Luanne finally found her silver cell phone.

"I was trying not to wake you," Luanne said as she bent down and kissed him on his forehead. "Just wanted to call Miley and Lilly real quick."

"What about?"

Luanne smiled. "I had a special dream," she said simply.

Ron blinked his eyes open. "And you have to share that with your sister and Lilly at... two in the morning?"

Luanne paused, then she nodded. "Pretty much, yeah." She smirked at him as she slipped into the bathroom of his hotel room, closing the door behind her. She loved her husband, but these dreams were something that were only shared between herself, Miley, and Lilly, and she had accepted that long ago.

As Miley closed her phone, Lilly reached up from where she was leaning against her wife's chest and ran her fingers through Hannah Montana's long blonde hair. "Everything okay?" Lilly asked Miley.

Miley nodded. "She had a dream."

Lilly's ears perked up at that statement. It was still rare for Luanne to have one of the mysterious dreams that the three of them shared, and Lilly couldn't help but wonder what her sister-in-law had dreamed about. She didn't have to ask, though, because Miley was already telling her.

"She saw a house, sweetheart. A house in the woods. And her and Ron's son. They were living there, and she said it felt so much like home that she couldn't believe it." Miley felt a tear run down her cheek, leaving her face where Lilly's lips were suddenly brushing against her chin tenderly, delicately sweeping away the lone tear. "She said that dream made things clearer for her. About what she needs to do."

Lilly sighed. "I'm gonna miss having her so close to us, but she needs to move back to Tennessee. She really does."

Miley nodded, taking a moment to look at where Peyton and Melody were asleep in their seats on the private jet. It was almost midnight their time, and all of them were tired following their busy day in Las Vegas. "She belongs at home," she said. "I just hope Ron will be okay with moving. You think she's told him yet?"

Lilly grinned. "I expect she's already started breaking the news to him," she said smugly. "After she softened him up first. But I don't think Ron's going to have any problem with moving. He never did like the beach or the ocean much."

"Probably because you loved them," said Miley, echoing what Lilly was already thinking.

"Probably," Lilly agreed, snuggling closer to her wife as she closed her eyes. "But Miles, you know that if you ever wanted to move back to Tennessee, I'd—"

"Shhh," Miley whispered against Lilly's head. "I know you would, baby, but we live out here now. Maybe one day things might change where we want to move to Tennessee, but for right now we belong in California. In _our_ home."

"With our baby," added Lilly, resting her left hand on Miley's abdomen.

"Yep," whispered Miley, laying her own hand atop Lilly's as she closed her own eyes. "It's gonna be late when we land."

"S'ok," Lilly mumbled. "We can keep each other awake long enough to get back home. Then we can get some real sleep before the movie premiere tomorrow."

"Having the girls along is going to be crazy," Miley said softly. "But I think they'll do great. Don't you?"

Lilly smiled, her eyes still closed as she relished the sensation of feeling her wife's body heat seep into her face and chest. "Honey, I think they've done amazingly well. Although I think you splurged a bit too much on them in the shops at the Venetian."

"Me?" asked Miley, a hint of surprise in her voice. "Who had the entire staff at the Jimmy Choo store getting shoes for them to try on?"

Lilly squirmed slightly as she buried her face deeper against Miley's chest. "Couldn't have been me," she said, her voice muffled. "And besides, they needed something to wear with those other dresses you bought them at BCBG/Max Azria."

Now it was Miley's turn to squirm slightly, a fact that delighted Lilly. "Well, some of them looked adorable. And besides, it's always good to have options when it comes to dresses. And for shoes." Miley patted Lilly's head lightly, and the two of them both took in a deep breath and then blew it out together. "It feels nice to do something for people we love, doesn't it?"

Lilly nodded. She knew Miley could feel her actions, as close as they were. "We're very fortunate, sweetheart," she said, and she could feel Miley's agreement with that statement not with her body but with her heart. "And yes, it feels really good to do something for our girls. I just hope we don't spoil them."

"It'll be good practice for spoiling our baby," Miley whispered.

Lilly sat up, drawing a curious look from Miley. "We can't spoil our daughters, Miley," she whispered. "We have to be really careful to raise them out of the spotlight, so they grow up normally like we did. Kids that grow up as celebrities don't turn out well, usually."

Miley felt her heart swell with love for her Lilly and for their children yet to be born. She gently held her hand to Lilly's cheek, relishing how Lilly instinctively leaned into the tender contact between the two of them. "We will, baby," she said. "We'll take special care to give them as normal a life as we possibly can. I know that's important too. If they start to get out of line, then we'll bring them back. You've done that for me before, more than once."

Lilly smiled, a hint of wistfulness in that smile. "You just needed someone you love to remind you not to get so stuck-up," she said pleasantly. "I'm good at that."

Miley's cobalt eyes flickered with a mix of emotions as she said, "Among other things." She let just the tip of her tongue peek out of the side of her mouth, making Lilly's face blush slightly. She let herself laugh, enjoying at how it felt to let the happiness that filled her bubble up from deep inside and spill forth. She kissed Lilly on her glittering pink lips as she said, "I love you, sweetheart."

Lilly wrapped her arms around Miley's neck and kissed back deeply as she replied, "Mmm, love you too, baby."

After a good night's sleep and a quick morning swim, the four young ladies were in the back of a limousine, en route to the noon movie premiere at the Mann's Chinese Theater in Los Angeles. "So you two think you're ready for the red carpet, huh?" asked Miley with a knowing grin. Nobody was ready for their first time.

Peyton nodded confidently. "Yeah, we're ready. If Mel doesn't pee on herself in the first minute."

Melody smacked her older sister on the arm, with a crisp smack ringing out. "Hey! I'm not the one who peed on the Tennessee Twister coaster at Dollywood!"

Unfazed, Peyton replied, "No, you just peed on the Slidewinder."

"That was a water ride, so it doesn't count," countered Mel, sticking her tongue out. "And you can't prove it, anyway."

Peyton slid across the seat to extract some sort of revenge on her little sister, only to be stopped by a rather impressive golden-hued shoe being planted between the two of them.

"Those dresses are each one-of-a-kind Kylee Dean originals," Lilly said, her voice squarely in the _I'm not fooling around_ range. "I suggest you don't tear them wrestling around."

Melody's dress was a brilliant scarlet, contrasting with her short black hair and green eyes to an amazing effect. The shoulder straps were small but evident, and they played an important role in balancing the appearance of the dress with the knee-length skirt. Peyton's dress was slightly shorter and had spaghetti straps across the shoulders, but it followed the same basic style and cut as her sister's, differing mainly in its color. The royal blue silk picked up the strawberry highlights in her dark blonde hair, making her hazel eyes glow. Each girl was wearing a black pair of Jimmy Choos to round out the outfit, and both of them had elected to go without any jewelry whatsoever. Neither of them was big on that sort of thing, despite Miley's and Lilly's attempts to persuade them to wear some earrings or a particular necklace.

Lilly was wearing a burnished gold satin dress, hugging her body in a way that would have made her uncomfortable just a few years ago. But she spent a good amount of time keeping herself in shape, and now it was time to show it off... at least according to her wife. Lilly suspected that Miley really just wanted everyone to see how beautiful they were together, and she couldn't argue with that. She was wearing Lola's lavender wig tonight, with dark opal earrings that Miley had bought her for Christmas two years ago. The back of her dress was nonexistent, with only the strap wrapping around her neck holding up the top. The sides were fairly secure in their position, as they had been reinforced at the waist to keep the fabric from tenting and giving anyone behind her a chance to peek beneath the shimmering satin.

Miley would be quick to say that Lilly's back was one of her favorite parts of her wife's body, with its lean lines and taut muscles apparent to even a cursory look. Miley would often drift away watching Lilly's back move while they were in the shower, tracing the lovely lines of muscle and bones with her eyes and then with her fingers before giving into her desires for the woman she had sworn to love and protect. And now the cut of Lilly's dress was already making it hard for Miley to concentrate on anything other than how insanely sexy Lilly was, whether dressed up as Lola the actress or Lilly the skater girl. Both were equally attractive to Miley, because both personae made up the woman she loved.

Lilly understood that dual attraction completely. Even before she had ever met Miley Stewart, she had adored Hannah Montana. But Lilly was sure that it was Miley, not Hannah, that she had fallen in love with first. There had been times when Hannah had actually proved to be a challenge to their relationship, but Lilly had never seriously entertained thoughts of asking Miley to give up her music career. She loved the blonde singer just like she loved her brunette angel, and she never had any problem with getting the two of them confused. Hannah belonged to Lola, and Miley belonged to Lilly, and vice versa. That was that. The two couples coexisted peacefully, with the ease that came from years of practice. The dual relationships made the powerful bond between the two young women even stronger, and neither of them planned on giving that up.

As the limousine slowed to a stop at the front of the red carpet, Lilly took a longing look at Miley. Hannah was wearing a shimmering gown that started white at the top and slowly faded into a rosy pink as it reached the bottom of the calf-length skirt. Her back was nearly as exposed as Lilly's was, and Miley's chest was made more prominent by the open top of her dress. With Hannah's blonde hair and Miley's tan from days spent on the beach, the look was stunningly healthy, giving the pop star a glow that combined with her ever-present smile to make her look more radiant, more beautiful than ever before. Complementing that appearance were the mild prominence of her stomach and the slightly increased size of her breasts, both hints of the new life slowly growing inside the young woman.

Lilly rested her left hand on Miley's stomach, feeling the heat through the thin fabric of her gown. "You look amazing, Hannah," she said as she nuzzled Miley's neck, planting soft kisses along the way.

Miley's arms wrapped around her best friend, holding her securely as they felt the limousine shift into Park. "Then you look even better than amazing," Miley said with a loving smile as she looked into Lilly's eyes. "Because you're more beautiful than ever, sweetheart, and tonight is your night. It's time for everyone to see just what you're really capable of."

Lilly smiled as she looked into the blue eyes of her wife. While it was Lola on Hannah's lap, it was Lilly's voice that softly said to Miley, "Thank you for supporting me, and for bringing me into your life."

"Oh honey," Miley said as she ran a finger across Lola's glittering pink lips, "it was never just my life. You were always part of it from the day I was born, we just didn't know it yet. Just like you were always a part of me."

Lilly kissed Miley on the lips, giving as much of herself as she could through that burning contact. As the limousine door opened, they continued to kiss for several seconds, only stopping when the barrage of flashes finally broke their concentration. "Kinda got lost there, didn't we?" Lilly asked, a light-hearted grin on her face.

"Yeah, but it was a good lost," Miley whispered back. "Okay, time for you to walk your red carpet, hon. I'll be right behind you."

"No you won't," Lilly said, lightly pushing Miley out of the limousine ahead of her. She followed her wife out, taking her hand and stepping up next to her as the array of reporters, photographers and videographers began shouting at the two of them. Lilly smiled as she looked at Miley and said, "You belong beside me, not behind me, remember? Someone really smart said that to me once, you know."

Miley smiled as she stepped forward to stand beside her best friend. "You think I'm really smart?" she asked quietly.

Lilly turned to look at Miley, a sparkle in her eye as the wave of flashes washed across her face. "You have your moments," she replied playfully, drawing a matching gleam in Miley's eyes. She turned around to motion for Peyton and Melody to step out of the limousine.

As the two teenagers exited the black limousine, they found themselves the target of seemingly hundreds of camera flashes, all cascading upon them at once. At first they found themselves shielding their eyes, but after a few seconds they managed to compose themselves and adopted a more relaxed posture. Miley and Lilly stepped back to them, taking their hands as they guided the young girls into a position ahead of them, where they could more effectively keep anyone from cornering their nieces. Some of the reporters were quite good at separating the more naive celebrities from the pack, and the last thing Miley or Lilly wanted was for one of their sweet nieces to be picked apart by a hawkish journalist.

The four of them slowly made their way along the red carpet, stopping every few feet to pose for pictures and to wave to the crowd. Most of the questions shouted to them regarded how Lola felt about the new movie and about how Hannah's pregnancy was going, and they politely answered those questions when they could. The few questions asking who Peyton and Melody were and what they were doing there were deftly ignored by the quartet until they reached a reporter that Miley and Lilly both liked, one of _Entertainer_ magazine's reporters named Alyssa Anderson.

Alyssa waved to the two young stars and their guests. She was one of the younger entertainment reporters, not much older than Miley and Lilly, which was one of the reasons why they liked her as much as they did. She was also intelligent and very polite, more good points as far as the Truscotts were concerned. "Lola, Hannah!" she called out as the four of them reached her.

"Hey, Alyssa!" said Lilly happily.

"Hi, Lola, Hannah! Oh, _Lola!_ Your dress is _so_ gorgeous!" Alyssa said, admiring how the fabric shimmered in the sunlight. "Do you mind to turn around so we can see the back?" As Lilly did so, cheers and whistles went up in the crowd next to them.

Miley stepped forward and said with a loud voice, "Hey, that's my woman you're whistlin' at, so just remember that," putting enough humor into her voice to draw laughs from the crowd.

As Lilly finished her turn, Alyssa asked, "So Lola, what in the world do you do to keep a figure like that? I mean, you're in amazing shape!" Before Lilly had a chance to answer, Alyssa turned to Miley and said, "And Hannah! Wow! You don't even look pregnant! How far along are you?"

"Eighteen weeks," Miley said pleasantly, "give or take. And thanks!" She took Lilly's hand and said, "Lola keeps me exercising. That's how I stay in shape, tryin' to keep up with her!"

Now Alyssa motioned for Peyton and Melody to step forward. "And who are you two?" she asked with a friendly voice. "Are you friends or relatives?"

Lilly put her arm around Peyton and said, "These are the winners of our Montanas' Movie Contest! They won the chance to fly out to California and come to the premiere of 'Above and Beyond' with us!"

"What are your names?" Alyssa asked, smiling as she pointed the microphone at the two teenagers.

"I'm Peyton," said the older Burns sister, smiling like she walked the red carpet every week.

"And I'm Melody," added the thirteen-year-old, shifting on her feet bashfully but also smiling happily.

"We're still kinda in shock from all this," Peyton added, waving her hand at all the hubbub surrounding them.

"Yeah, it can be a bit much," Miley helpfully said. "Took me a long time to get used to it." Suddenly someone shoved her from behind, and only Lilly tightening her grip on Miley's arm kept her from falling to the ground.

"Oops," said Mikayla, a thoroughly fake look of regret on her face. "I must not have seen you there. Sorry, Hannah."

Lilly helped Miley regain her footing, then she moved to block Mikayla's path as the dark-haired woman tried to walk away. "I swear," Lilly said quietly as she glared at Mikayla, "if we weren't on the middle of the red carpet, I'd smack the bitch right out of you."

Mikayla smirked as she replied, "You'd have to hit me pretty hard to do that."

Lilly smiled a cold smile as she said, "Oh, I was counting on it." The two of them locked gazes for long seconds, long enough for most of the cameras and reporters to turn their way. "Stay away from my wife, Mikayla," Lilly finally said.

Mikayla waited for a few seconds, then she said, "Aren't you going to threaten me?" as she stood there with her hands on her hips. "Like, how you're going to ruin my career or something?"

"You're doing just fine by yourself, as far as that goes," Lilly answered, a bit louder. "And I'm not going to give you free publicity by making threats or anything like that. You're the only one who thinks that you're some kind of rival for my wife. Everybody else knows that your career is never going to be close to Hannah's, just like your talent. We've tried to not let this obsession of yours with my wife become big news, but if you _ever_ touch Hannah like that again, I'll turn your head around for you. No more warnings."

Mikayla held a neutral face, but she was shaking slightly on the inside. She knew that she might have gone too far with her little shove on Hannah, and while she had wanted to provoke a reaction, she didn't exactly want to gamble on a fight with Lola Montana. "Most celebrities hide behind their bodyguards," she said, trying to deflect Lola's last statement.

Lilly leaned in closer and said, "I don't need a bodyguard to kick your snotty ass into the ground."

Mikayla considered her options and opted for the safe out. "Whatever," she said, turning around and taking two steps before she heard a ripping sound and was nearly jerked off her feet. She caught herself with her hand on the ground before she fell; she turned around to see that one of the teenage girls with Hannah and Lola had her foot squarely on the hem of her emerald dress.

"Oops," said Peyton, with nearly the same tone of voice as Mikayla had used just a minute ago. "You should be more careful. That dress looked expensive."

Mikayla growled deep in her throat as she stood up, eyes blazing with rage, only to feel herself spun around by a firm grip on her arm. She found herself face to face with the steely blue eyes of Hannah Montana.

"That's enough," Miley said firmly. "You're done here." She pulled Mikayla along toward the approaching security.

"Not hiding behind your dyke girlfriend?" Mikayla sneered as she looked at the blonde leading her away.

Miley pushed Mikayla into the grip of the two security guards. "I don't hide behind anybody," she said as she regarded the dark-haired singer. "You're really not that bright, are you?" she asked disdainfully. "We defend and protect each other, Mikayla. And she's not _just_ my girlfriend. She's also my best friend, my partner, my lover and my wife. She's who I'm spendin' the rest of my life with, and everything that comes after, too." Miley felt her anger start to ebb now that Mikayla was no longer an immediate threat to her family. "Maybe if you weren't so hateful, you might find somebody that cared about you. Stop wastin' your time on stupid games and start spendin' it on your own life, Mikayla. You'll be much happier in the long run."

As Hannah turned and walked away from her, Mikayla was so furious that she couldn't even form words. She seethed internally as the security personnel escorted her off the red carpet and away from the movie premiere, not so much angry at her humiliating exit as she was at how right Hannah Montana had been. So much of her life had already been lost, to either the pursuit of fame or to the repercussions of attaining it. How much more could she afford to waste on petty rivalries that would have been right at home in high school?

She turned to look over her shoulder as Hannah and Lola hugged briefly, then they resumed their walk down the red carpet as if nothing had happened. The surge of resentment instantly buried her thoughts of regret deep in her mind, once again focusing her thoughts on how to inflict damage on her sworn enemy—no, sworn _enemies_. They were definitely a couple, no doubt about it. Maybe she could use that closeness against them somehow, turning it into a liability rather than a strength. She'd have to get Margot on that as soon as she got the greasy hands of these security guards off of her. It might take some time to plan, but there had to be a way to hurt Hannah and Lola through each other. And she was going to find it.

Back inside the theater, the movie played to an extremely receptive audience. The surprise revelation of Hannah Montana playing the tragic figure of single mother and doomed lover to Lola's emotionally scarred veteran was met with cheers and laughter, but the on-screen chemistry between the two young women was blazing. Miley found herself sweating as they watched the two love scenes between their characters, with Lilly's heart pounding as well. The fact that they could feel each other's arousal made their desire for one another more intense, and they gripped each other's hand tightly as they stayed in their seats through sheer willpower. Though there was no nudity in the movie, the passion in each love scene left the audience feeling enthralled at the very obvious bond between the two women, transferring from their real life relationship to the movie's characters in a way that was not only believable but quite real.

At the end of the film, where Lola's character returned to her hometown after winning the court battle and adopting the surviving children of Hannah's character, the audience sat lost in the bittersweet moment where the young veteran introduced her new children to her parents, haunted by the loss of her true love but determined to raise their children with all the love they had shared in their time together. As the credits began to play, Lilly found herself shivering with trepidation as silence filled the theater. Then applause began, rapidly building in intensity and volume until the theater seats were shaking. Miley pulled Lilly close and hugged her tightly.

"Just breathe, hon," Miley said softly as she held Lilly. "Just breathe." She could still feel how tense her best friend was, like she had been tied into knots deep inside, so Miley carefully ran her left hand through Lola's hair, cradling Lilly's head in her loving grip while being careful to not dislodge the lavender wig. "I don't think I've ever been as proud of you as I am today, sweetheart," Miley whispered into Lilly's ear, blinking away tears as best as she could. "And I've been pretty darn proud of you over the years, let me tell ya."

Lilly had been holding herself together through the stress of the day, but as she found herself in the safest place in the world—held securely in her best friend's arms—she finally let go, allowing the emotions that had accumulated inside her to burst forth as she began to cry. She held onto Miley as she heard the cheers and applause continue, somehow both comforting and terrifying in their enthusiasm, and she tried to shut out everything but the love she felt between them as she simply took one deep breath after another.

Miley didn't have to ask Lilly why she was crying; she had felt the tension grow inside her wife as she stubbornly maintained control despite the powerful fears and anxiety accumulating deep inside. Now that they had watched the finished film and knew that it was going to be a success, Lilly could finally purge those worries and free herself of them once and for all. Miley simply held her wife and whispered her love to her time and time again, trying to give Lilly a familiar voice to focus on while her fears and worries poured forth. She looked over Lilly's shoulder and saw their nieces gazing at the two of them, tears trickling down their faces to run into the proud smiles beneath as they applauded. Miley could see how much the two of them wanted to hug their aunt and offer their support, but they maintained their distance to keep from seeming too familiar. _They're trying so hard to not jeopardize our secret,_ Miley thought, and she was proud of them for their self-control.

Then she felt their arms wrap around Lilly's body, and she couldn't help but smile. Maybe it would be okay this one time if they showed some support for their hero Lola. It was dark in here anyway, and no one would think anything untoward about two special guests showing their appreciation to their hosts. And if they did, then Hannah Montana would simply tell them to buzz off.

"That was an amazing movie," Melody said as she hugged her Aunt Lilly.

"It was the best movie I've ever seen, Lola," added Peyton, her face buried against Lilly's back. She released her aunts from the hug as Melody followed suit.

Lilly finally opened her eyes as she began to return to normal now that the emotions pent up inside her had been released. She looked up into Miley's sparkling blue eyes wet with tears and softly said, "You know I couldn't have done any of this without you. Thank you." She kissed Miley tenderly, being careful not to let any other emotions inside her take charge.

As their lips separated, Miley looked back at Lilly and said, "You're never without me," smiling at how Lilly's eyes lit up at that truth they both knew.

"I better not be," Lilly replied, smiling as she hugged Miley again. She then turned to regard their nieces, looking as lovely as movie stars themselves in their gowns and shoes. "I'm really glad the two of you could be here for this," she said. "That makes it just about perfect."

"Just about?" asked Miley, not sure what else could add to the moment until she felt Lilly's hand gently press against her abdomen.

"She couldn't see it yet," Lilly said as she looked down at their child growing inside Miley. "But then she might not have liked the grown-up stuff in it." Suddenly she felt a soft thump against her hand, so faint she thought she might have imagined it. She looked up at Miley, seeing the look of surprise on her wife's face. "Was that—?"

A second thump interrupted Lilly, and Miley felt the fluttering deep inside her body. "She's kicking!" Miley said excitedly as she covered Lilly's hand with her own. "That's what it has to be!"

Lilly found herself stunned into silence as she felt the quivering kicks of their daughter for the first time, her mouth hanging open in a surprised grin. She barely noticed when Peyton and Melody put their hands besides hers and Miley's, joining in the joyous moment as they too felt the soft thumps of tiny feet kicking. As the credits to her first movie continued to roll, Lilly was oblivious to the ongoing applause and cheers surrounding her, lost instead to the reaction of the youngest moviegoer present.

"I think she likes your movie, sweetheart," Miley said happily.

"Then it's all been worth it," Lilly said, wiping away tears with the back of her hand in a most unladylike fashion. Motion down the aisle caught her eye, and she looked up to see Jen Kittrell waving at them, pointing at her watch.

"What is it?" Miley asked.

"Jen's discreetly reminding us that we need to make an appearance at the post-movie party," Lilly said. "But I really just want to go home and lie in the hammock with you and our baby." She put her head on Miley's shoulder, slowly becoming more difficult as Miley's stomach gradually enlarged, and took another deep breath. She held it in for long seconds before exhaling slowly, settling into Miley's embrace happily. "But I suppose being a celebrity has its price, right?"

Miley rolled her eyes. "As if," she said, getting a smack on her butt from Lilly. "Hey, you knew all about this celebrity stuff when you said yes to me seven years ago!"

"Yeah, I did," Lilly sighed. "So I guess I can't blame you for it, huh?"

"Nope," Miley said confidently. "This one's all yours, hon."

"Mmmm," Lilly mumbled as she closed her eyes and once again laid her head on her wife's shoulder. "Lucky me," she said happily.

**Author's Afterword:** Sorry again for how long it took to get this chapter up. I promise I'll try to do better next time. Remember to send your positive thoughts to Miley and Emily, too, whether they decide to maintain a strong friendship or to move beyond friendship into something more. We can all use more love, support and acceptance. I hope that my stories can bring some more happiness and smiles to all of you, too. See you as soon as the next chapter is ready!

-- Jo --


	12. Chapter 12: Clarity

**Author's Note:** Whew! Finally got this chapter done. It was determined to shape and reshape itself as I wrote it, and it wound up being quite different than how I had planned. But it feels good at this point, and I'm convinced that the story has its own plans that sometimes override mine. Thanks to everyone for the really nice comments and questions; if you've sent me a message and haven't heard back from me, I apologize. I'm trying to work through them when I can, giving enough attention to each one as I reply. I've also been busy trying to keep with some of the more recent Liley stories that have been posted, because we're getting some good ones put up. I expect that with summer here and school out for many writers, the number of stories and chapters being posted should increase. Oh, and if later in this chapter you'd like a visual component to Lilly and Miley looking all sweet as they sit next to each other and holds hands, go watch them on the Tyra Banks show again. Parts 5 and 6, as they're posted on YouTube. It'll make you smile at how cute they are together, I promise.

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist or publication mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo P.

Chapter 12: Clarity

_Forget the application_

_You're the right girl for the task_

_Let me take you on vacation_

_Just do it—you don't have to ask_

--The Donnas;"Take It Off" (as covered by Hannah Montana for Lola)

As the sun finally finished climbing above the horizon, the group of young men and women cleaning one stretch of beach in the city of Malibu stopped for a break.

"We really appreciate all of you coming down and helping out today, Miley, Lilly," said Sarah Sweet. "Things are getting better, but sometimes it's still tough to get enough people to get all the work done."

Lilly smiled as Miley handed her their thermos filled with Gatorade. "I think the world is happy to have someone like you looking out for her, Sarah," said Lilly before she took a drink from the thermos.

Sarah smiled as she sat down on the sandy beach. "She needs all the help we can give her," she said simply. As a shadow fell over her, she looked up. "Hey babe," she said to Cassie as the dark-haired woman sat down beside her girlfriend.

"Your nieces are so cute," Cassie said to Miley and Lilly. "How old are they again?"

"Peyton turns fifteen next month, and Melody just turned thirteen," answered Miley. "I think they've had a good time these last two weeks."

"They've had a great time, Miles," Lilly said as she smoothly moved some of Miley's long hair from in front of her wife's lovely face. "I bet as soon as we get back to Misty Hollow that they'll start asking their parents to move out here."

"Hey Aunt Miley, Aunt Lilly?"

Lilly and Miley turned to see Peyton jogging toward them, not at a full run but not taking her time, either. "What is it, Peyton?" asked Miley.

As Peyton reached the circle of four friends sitting there, she said, "Do you mind if we head on back to the house? I don't think Mel is feeling real good."

Both Miley and Lilly could see the concern on their older niece's face, informing them that she wasn't just making this up as a way to get out of any more work today. "Okay," Miley said, getting up quickly. "Where is she?"

"She said she was going to wait by the car," Peyton said, turning to look at the parking lot. She turned back to Sarah and Cassie. "I'm really sorry to have to run out on you like this, honest!"

Sarah smiled. "It's okay. I'm happy that you came out and helped as much as you did."

Cassie stood and said, "It's really nice to meet you, Peyton. Have a good flight back home."

"It was great meeting you two!" said Peyton happily. "And Sarah, good luck with your doctorate. Maybe I might go to college out here one day."

Sarah grinned. "Well, if you ever do apply to UCLA I'll see what I can do, but I suspect your aunts might push for USC," she said, giving a teasing look to Miley and Lilly.

"We'll push for whichever school fits her best," Lilly said. "Okay, we need to go check on Mel. See you later!" Lilly took off a run, temporarily leaving Miley behind in her haste to get to the car and check on Melody.

"We'll try to help out some more when we get back," Miley said, waving. "Oh, you still have that spare key, Cassie?"

Cassie held up her keyring, giving the keys a jangling shake. "Got it right here," she said, a smug look on her face. "And we'll be happy to keep an eye on the place for you while you're gone."

"Thanks, both of you," Miley said. She gave each of them a hug, then she broke into a run across the sand toward her wife and niece, both now at the red Mustang in the parking lot.

As Miley reached the car, she saw that Lilly had opened the door and was sitting in the back seat, holding Melody while the thirteen-year-old buried her face in Lilly's shoulder and cried. "What's wrong?" asked Miley, concern filling her thoughts.

Lilly felt that concern wash through her own mind, and it was powerful enough that she had to take a second to refocus her concentration. She looked up at Miley and tried to send a soothing thought to her best friend, but it was hard at the moment. "Trish broke up with her," Lilly said sadly.

"Aw Mel, I'm sorry," Miley said as she sat in the front seat, starting the car but leaving it in Park as she turned to look into the back. "Dang it, why did she do that?" she said, not really expecting an answer.

Melody lifted her face from Lilly's shoulder, and the redness in her eyes made Miley's heart ache just as much as Lilly's had when she first saw the young girl's condition. "She said that she cared about me a lot, but that she wanted to try to be straight." She gulped down a breath of air before she continued, "How do you _try_ to be straight?" she asked loudly, turning to look at Miley. "I mean, if you know you're gay, then why keep makin' yourself miserable by tryin' to be something you're not?"

"Oh, Melody," Miley said as she leaned over the seat and kissed her niece on the top of her head. "Some people are too scared to admit what they know in their heart, inchworm," Miley said, using a nickname that she and Lilly hadn't called Melody since she was nine. She smiled sadly as she said, "Not everybody is as brave as you and your sister are."

Melody looked over at her big sister who, despite all their arguments and tiffs over the years, had always been there to stand up for her. As she looked at Peyton, the fourteen-year-old reached across the seat and took her sister's hand. "If she's not smart enough to see how terrific you are, Mel, then she doesn't deserve you," Peyton said firmly.

"It's not fair!" Melody suddenly shouted, making everyone else in the car jump. "She should have at least tried! She should have _tried_ to give this a chance!"

Lilly looked at Miley. "I think we need some serious medicine for this, honey," she said, pleased when she saw Miley smile knowingly. As Miley turned around and buckled her seat belt, Peyton did the same. As the car pulled out of the parking place and began its trip to the Marble Slab Creamery, Lilly continued to hold her niece.

"It's not fair," Melody muttered again, morosely.

"No, it's not," Lilly said softly. "But life isn't fair, Melody. It's full of good things and bad things, and we have to learn the enjoy the good and move past the bad."

Melody sniffled, then she wiped her nose with the back of her hand. "I think I loved her," she said sadly, closing her eyes as tears spilled forth once again.

"Oh, Mel," Lilly said as she looked up to see Peyton watching the two of them closely. She gave Peyton what she hoped was a soothing smile, then she said, "At your age emotions are so strong that losing someone you love can be heartbreaking." Without looking Lilly reached over the front seat and rested her hand on Miley's right shoulder, giving it a loving squeeze as she felt Miley's fingers curl around her hand. "And having someone break up with you can seem like the end of the world, especially if you really liked them. But there's going to be someone out there who's meant for you, Melody Burns, and you just have to keep plugging along until you find her."

Miley kept her eyes on the road as she continued to drive, but it took all her concentration to keep the car in the road. Lilly's words had made Miley think of losing her mother all those years ago and how that loss had devastated her for quite some time; obviously Lilly had known that. The simple contact of Lilly's hand on her shoulder had given Miley immediate comfort, just as Lilly had known it would. However, the tears that were collecting in Miley's eyes weren't tears of sadness—they were tears of happiness, for having a partner who understood her as well as Lilly did and who was always ready to offer her love and support, even before Miley knew she needed it. _I want Melody and Peyton to have this. It might be too much to ask for, but I want them to experience a love that fills their hearts and souls like Lilly fills mine._ As silence took hold through the car, Miley said over her shoulder, "Thank you, Lil."

Lilly gave Miley's fingers a squeeze. "You're welcome, Miles," she said warmly.

"She was hot, too," Melody said abruptly. After a few seconds of stunned silence, Peyton broke the silence with her laughter. She was quickly joined by Lilly, then Miley, then finally Melody herself. "I mean, she was really hot!" Melody added through her laughter.

"Okay, she _was_ really hot," Peyton admitted. "She had a great ass."

"Peyton!" hissed Miley.

"No, her ass really _was_ terrific, Aunt Miley," Melody said, nodding her head. "Nice and strong, and her legs rocked, too."

Lilly covered Melody's mouth with her hand. "Okay, let's not make your Aunt Miley run out of the road," she said quickly.

"Hotter than any of _my_ boyfriends so far," Peyton grudgingly admitted. "For now," she quickly added.

"Are you two competing or something?" asked Lilly, looking back and forth between the two sisters.

"Uh uh."

"No way!"

Lilly simply smiled and sat back in her seat. "Yeah, yeah, tell it to someone who might believe it," she said quietly.

After thirty minutes and two scoops of ice cream therapy, everyone was feeling better. Melody was still obviously sad, but she was no longer crying every few minutes. "I just can't imagine trying to live like something I'm not," she finally said to no one in particular.

Miley rubbed Melody's back. "Mel, we all do that to some degree," she said. "It's dangerous and pretty dang scary to let the whole world see all of who you are. You and your sister are very special and very fortunate to have been brought up to be as accepting of others as you are. You're two strong young women, and you have to always remember that."

Melody looked at Miley, a sad smile on her face. "I think Trish is hurtin' too, Aunt Miley. She tried her best not to cry, but I could see it in her eyes, how torn up she was."

"Trish is wrestling with what Miley and I went through for quite some time, Melody," Lilly said from across the table.

"I don't think Trish is dealin' with exactly what we were, hon," Miley said as she reached across the table to take Lilly's hand. She ran her thumb over her wife's hand lovingly as she said, "Trish seems more worried about what other people are thinkin' of her. We couldn't really give a flip about what other people thought; we were just worried about losin' each other as friends."

Lilly considered Miley's words, and the more she thought about them the more she saw her best friend was right. Certainly there had been fear and concern about how their family and friends would react to finding out she was in love with Miley, but the fear of losing the girl who had become part of her life loomed large over all other worries. "I guess you're right, Miles," Lilly said, "but regardless of exactly what it is that someone's afraid of, finally accepting that you're in love with another girl—or another boy, for guys—is pretty darn scary any way you cut it."

"So when did you know, Melody?" asked Miley out of curiosity.

Melody grinned as Peyton started laughing, nearly choking on her bite of ice cream. Lilly slapped Peyton's back until the fourteen-year-old was able to get her coughing under control. "This is a good one," croaked Peyton, still smiling.

"Well," said Melody as she took another lick of her ice cream, "we were at this sleepover last year at one of my friend's houses when they snuck these boys in to see us. We started playing this game where you'd spin a cell phone twice, and the two people it pointed to went into a dark closet for a few minutes."

Miley and Lilly both nodded. "'Seven Minutes in Heaven' is what they called it when we were in school," Miley said. "Never really had played it, though."

"Me either," said Lilly. "I was okay with a kiss or holding hands, but not making out like that. At least not with anyone but my sweetheart, once I figured that much out." She flashed Miley a brilliant smile over their entwined hands, still resting on the table openly.

Melody gave her aunts an approving smile as she continued, "Anyway, it came up for me to go in the closet with Gary Boring, this one boy in our class."

"Eww!" said Peyton. "The one whose brother got caught jerking off in the bathroom last year?"

"Yeah, that's him," said Melody as Miley and Lilly stifled their laughter, barely. "Anyway, for me it wasn't exactly seven minutes in heaven, more like ten seconds in hell. That was how long it took for him to get himself kneed in the balls for tryin' to put his hands up my pajamas."

Now Miley and Lilly couldn't hold in their laughter any longer. The heavy hearts from earlier this morning needed some happy form of release, and the humor of the story fit the bill nicely. Even Melody laughed a bit at the memory, and Peyton just leaned forward to rest her head on the table as she cackled, her upper body quivering with laughter.

"So anyway," said Melody, "they decided I had to go again since I didn't make it the whole time, so when they hurried up and spun the phone again, it pointed to Bridget Brookers."

"Now, ya'll know that I'm into boys," interjected Peyton as she lifted her head to look at her aunts, "but that Bridget was _cute_. Long, curly blonde hair, bright blue eyes, cheerleader, track star, she just had it goin' on!"

Melody grinned. "Well, by then I was so mad at havin' to do it again that I just grabbed her arm and pulled her into the closet with me." She sighed and took another lick of her ice cream. "We lasted the whole seven minutes that round," she finally said with a smile and a happy sigh.

"I heard that they had to pull you two out of the closet," Peyton said with a wry grin. "And then off each other."

"Bridget was a really good kisser," Melody admitted proudly.

Peyton looked over at Miley. "Bridget was Melody's very first girlfriend," she said proudly. "And I still think that Mom and Dad liked her better than anyone else."

"What happened to her?" asked Lilly.

"She moved to Texas," Melody said, a twinge of hurt in her voice. "I talked to her for a while, until she told me she had found a new girlfriend out there. But things didn't go real well for her, and she was having trouble at her school last I had heard."

"When was the last time you talked to her?" asked Miley. All she and Lilly had heard of this was when Melody had told them she had found a girlfriend a little over a year ago. Now she found herself curious to know more.

"Forever," sighed Melody.

"More specific would be nice," said Lilly, giving her niece a slightly chastising look.

"Six months or so," Melody clarified.

"And you haven't tried to keep in touch with her?" asked Miley.

"Why, so I could hear about how much fun she was having with her new girlfriend?" countered Melody, and by the sudden rise in her voice it was evident that there was still some emotion for her very first girlfriend running deep inside her. She looked down at the table and quietly said, "That would hurt too much."

Peyton caught Miley's eye from across the table, and she very slightly shook her head, trying to warn her aunt that this wound was still too painful to explore, especially now that it had been made worse by losing another girlfriend, even one that she had only been dating for two weeks.

Miley caught Peyton's gesture, and she understood the meaning behind it. She put her arm around Melody and said, "You know that if you ever want to talk..."

Melody looked up into her aunt's blue eyes. "I know I can always talk to you or Aunt Lilly. And thank you, Aunt Miley."

"Don't worry about thankin' me," Peyton said, feigning offense. "My feelings don't matter anyway." As she turned to look away, a wadded-up napkin hit her in the side of the head.

"Thank you, Peyton," said Melody, a smirk on her face. "Even though you can still make my life miserable at times."

Peyton grinned. "Same here, little sis. Same here. And you're very welcome."

Twenty-six hours later, a private jet pulled away from Los Angeles International Airport, bound for Nashville. Hannah Montana was singing in a special Christmas show at the Grand Ole Opry that night, and Miley had made sure that two extra tickets were being held for Peyton and Melody. Neither girl had ever been to a live show at the Opry, and the chance to see Hannah Montana perform only added to the thrill of the moment.

"Do we get to go backstage?" asked Peyton, her excitement showing through the normally reserved exterior she projected to the world.

"Yes, Peyton, of course you get to go backstage with us," Miley said, dressed as the blonde musician. "The two of you get to stay with Roxy and Lola when I'm onstage. And Roxy will be sharing a room with you at the Opryland Hotel tonight."

"Then we get to take the limousine back to Knoxville?" asked Lilly, wearing a new wig of shimmering white hair dusted with tiny specks of pink, yellow and blue.

Miley nodded. "Yep. Daddy's bringing it in late tonight, and we ride back with him in the morning. He'll probably have a car rented for us somewhere in Knoxville and then we can all ride back to Misty Hollow when the limo drops us off."

"That works," said Lilly happily as she snuggled next to Miley on the love seat they were sharing. She carefully ran her left hand under the bottom of Miley's shirt, resting her hand on her wife's slightly enlarged belly. "I love you," Lilly said softly in Miley's ear as she rubbed the warm skin of the woman she loved completely.

"I love you, baby," Miley whispered back, turning to kiss her wife softly. As they kissed, Miley could feel her body responding to her lover's touch, her kiss, her scent mingled with Lola's perfume.

Lilly grinned against Miley's lips as she shifted to hold her best friend more tightly. "I love it when she kicks so I can feel her," she said, pulling just far enough away from Miley's lips to speak clearly. She opened her eyes to see Miley's shimmering sapphire eyes looking back into her own.

"She can feel how excited I get when you touch me, hon, plus she knows that you're her mommy too. That's why she kicks your hand like she does; she's tellin' you that she loves you and that she can't wait to meet you."

Lilly couldn't keep the grin off her face as she felt two, then three more kicks against her gentle grip. "Well, that makes three of us, because I can't wait to meet her either!" she said, softly squealing with delight.

The flight went smoothly, and they arrived early enough to make a quick stop at the Montana Children's Center, the combination school and housing facility that they had built and donated to the city of Nashville five years ago. It had been almost a year since they had last visited the facility, but that time away was quickly forgotten as squealing hordes of girls and boys thronged around them and their guests. They only had a few hours to spend on this visit, but they squeezed everything they could out of their time there, seeing many of the new improvements to the school building and the new apartments that had been built to expand the center. After a loud and raucous goodbye from the center's children, families and staff, the four of them hopped back into the limousine and went directly to the Grand Ole Opry.

The Christmas show was a different experience than usual for Miley and Lilly. The Opry had been decorated with greenery and red ribbons and bows seemingly everywhere, and even though it was much colder in Tennessee than it had been in California, the warmth and happiness in the building were more than enough to lift everyone's spirits. There were over two dozen artists performing that night, and knowing that Hannah Montana wasn't the center of attention allowed everyone to relax considerably. Peyton and Melody got to stay backstage with Miley and Lilly, with Roxy secretly enjoying having two more clients to watch over. Having the teenagers present reminded her of those days several years ago when she found herself frequently tested by Miley and Lilly, teenagers themselves at that time. But when the two of them revealed their love to each other, much of the immature behavior that Roxy had come to expect from teenagers had ceased, replaced by a warm, caring love between her two clients that made them seem much older than they truly were. As proud as Roxy was for her two stars now all grown up, it felt nice to have two new teenagers to keep an eye on—although she would never admit that.

"This is really nice, Hannah," Lilly said from where they were sitting just off to the right of the stage. A chair had been brought out for Hannah to sit in given her pregnancy, but she had refused to sit unless Lola had one too. It had only taken a moment to procure a second seat, which the two girls scooted up next to the first so they could hold hands while watching the other artists perform.

As they sat there, Lilly leaning against her girlfriend and frequently placing little kisses on Miley's shoulder, arm and head, several other artists stopped by to congratulate them on their future daughter. Taylor Swift had gone so far as to buy a diaper bag and matching backpack for them, leading to her getting matching hugs from the mothers-to-be. They made sure that Taylor met Peyton and Melody, nearly causing both girls to faint. Peyton in particular had always loved the talented singer's music, and being this close to one of her favorite artists was yet another thrill of a lifetime. "I'd go gay for her," Peyton would happily say later, stars still in her eyes, and no one could doubt the sincerity of her words.

The rest of the night passed by like a dream for all four young women, with Peyton and Melody staying with Roxy in the suite next door to Miley and Lilly. It was after eleven when they finally reached the rooms, and Lilly immediately put her yawning wife to bed. "You've got to get some more sleep, Miles!" Lilly said as she steered Miley to the king-sized bed.

"Not sure why I'm so tired," Miley grumbled as she tossed her red leather jacket into the chair next to their bed.

Lilly gave her an astounded look as she took off her purple skirt. "You think it might have something to do with being pregnant, sweetheart?" she asked sarcastically. She tossed her purple skirt at Miley, narrowly missing her wife's head.

"Ha ha," said Miley as she pulled her shirt off, leaving just her light gray bra and matching panties on.

"Yep, I know I'm funny," Lilly said pleasantly as she threw herself down on the large bed, bouncing lightly as she hit. She crawled across the bed until she reached Miley, then she got on her hands and knees and kissed Miley's belly tenderly.

Miley reached down and wrapped an arm around Lilly's head, holding her lover's lips against her skin, still tingling from the contact between them. "You're more than just funny," Miley said. "You're everything to me." She smiled down at Lilly, her natural blonde curls hanging free from Lola's wig that she had worn most of the day.

Lilly placed several more kisses on Miley's bare stomach, finally ending by rolling over onto her side and gazing up into Miley's bright blue eyes. She grinned happily as she reached up and took Miley's right hand with her own. "You're everything to me too, Miles. And you know that."

Miley smiled down at her best friend who had been half of her heart for the last eleven years. "Get those clothes off," she said with a purr. "I'm ready for bed."

"Okay, but I need to run to the bathroom first," said Lilly as she sat up and skipped to the bathroom.

Miley finished taking off her bra and panties, tossing them into the seat on top of her jacket, shirt and pants. She turned down the bed and slid into the cool sheets, smiling as she felt her body begin to relax against the smooth fabric. As she heard giggling that heralded the arrival of her wife, Miley's smile grew even wider. Her body shivered in anticipation of Lilly's touch, and as the covers were peeled back she said, "'Bout time you got done, slowpoke!"

"Had to brush my teeth too," Lilly said as she slid across the bed, not stopping until she was lying pressed against Miley's back. She yanked the covers back over them, even though the combination of their body heat would probably drive them to kick most of the covers off during the night. For now the silky sheets felt heavenly, only surpassed by how good being next to Miley felt. Lilly kissed Miley on the shoulder, prompting her wife to turn her head toward her so Lilly could kiss her on the lips as well. "Love you, Miles," Lilly said as she wrapped her arms around her wife, moving her right arm to support Miley's head and her left hand to lovingly hold Miley's right breast.

"Mmm, love you too, Lilly Bear," Miley said as she reached up and rested her left hand atop Lilly's where it covered her breast, already drifting into the pleasant grip of slumber now that her bed was complete. It had been a long day, and they both needed some rest. Neither of them had to say anything about making love or not; instead it was just something understood between them, when to reconnect sexually and when to use simple intimacy to reinforce that ephemeral but unbreakable connection. Maybe that might change during the night as their subconscious minds took over during their dreams, but for now they were perfectly content to just hold each other and get some much-needed rest.

Three thousand miles away and endless emotional states apart, two women glared at each other across a coffee table in Los Angeles.

"All I'm saying is that I don't think it's gonna look good to be launching an attack in the press during Christmas," Mikayla said, slicing her hand through the air in front of her.

"Well, if you don't do something soon then you're going lose all the momentum you got out of your confrontation with them at the movie premiere two weeks ago," countered Margot, her face stern with irritation.

"Oh yeah, the _momentum_," Mikayla sneered. "I had forgotten about that. I don't think I've ever had that many people wanting to kick my ass at one time before." She took a drink of her sangria and leaned her head back to look up at the fan on the ceiling, lazily spinning in the same direction it always did, always moving but never going anywhere new. "I'm surprised no one tried."

"Your record sales went up thirty percent the next week," said Margot. "It worked out well. Especially since nobody _did_ kick your ass."

"Not for any lack of intent. I thought that Lola bitch was going to knock the shit out of me right there. Remind me to make sure she's not there next time I try to scare Blondie."

"Good luck with that. They're together almost all the time."

Mikayla leaned forward, placing her glass on the coffee table. "Blondie and Rainbow Brite," she sighed. "So how can we turn their being inseparable against them? I mean, there's got to be some way to use that in our favor."

"I'm working on that," said Margot as she took a drink of her coffee.

Mikayla made a face at her manager. "How the fuck can you drink that this late and still sleep? It's ten o'clock."

"You get used to it," said Margot. "And putting the right flavoring in it helps, too," she added with a knowing smile.

"Yeah, I bet," Mikayla said, turning away to look across the room. The box she had been looking at earlier that evening still sat in the corner of the room, unnoticed by Margot so far. Realizing that she was pointedly looking at it, Mikayla quickly looked back at her manager, only to see Margot staring at her intently. _Shit._

"Did I interrupt something when I came over?" Margot asked, the neutral tone of her voice not quite disguising the probing undertone.

"Nah," said Mikayla, reaching for her sangria and taking another long drink of it. "Just thinking about the next single." _Play it cool, don't let her see that you care._

Margot stared at her for long, uncomfortable seconds before quietly saying, "Bullshit."

Mikayla sighed. _Great. Exactly what I need._ "Look, I came across some pictures I thought I had thrown out, okay?"

"Pictures of...?"

"Yeah." Mikayla fixed Margot with a glare. "Like I said, I thought I had thrown them out."

Margot set her coffee mug down on the table, exactly over Mikayla's face on the new _Rolling Stone_. "Would've been better for you if you had, probably," she said, her voice not exactly threatening as much as frank.

"Yeah, probably," Mikayla agreed. She looked at the cardboard box again. She wasn't going to go over there, not with fucking Margot here. That bitch had already taken what parts of her life that Mikayla hadn't ruined herself; she sure as hell couldn't have those memories too. "But I didn't."

Margot leaned forward, locking gazes with her young client. "You realize there's no chance of things ever working out, right? Because you really fucked things up so badly that if he ever found out _half_ of what you did, he'd probably kill you himself."

Mikayla couldn't help but shudder. Margot was a manipulative, domineering bitch, but what really hurt was when she was completely right. Mikayla _had_ fucked up her life, and nothing she ever did could entirely put the pieces back together the way she sometimes dreamed about. But she had accepted her mistakes, and now she was trying to make things right, as least for some of the people she had hurt so badly. "Is that a threat?" she said, still looking at the larger woman sitting ten feet away from her.

Margot laughed, and the suddenness of that response startled Mikayla. "No, that wasn't a threat," she said as she stood. "If I threatened you, you'd know it, believe me. Besides, I don't need to threaten you anymore, do I?"

Mikayla turned away, willing the tears she felt building to stay hidden, at least long enough for the bitch to leave. "No, you don't," she said through gritted teeth. "I understand the way things stand."

"Good girl," said Margot, and the syrupy tone of her voice made Mikayla want to vomit. "I'll call you tomorrow and we can go over some of what the writers have come up with for your upcoming interview." She walked to the kitchen before she turned and said, "Oh, I saw you had gone to Mass the other day. Nice touch, especially with this coming up. It'll make it look like you're on the moral high ground."

"I feel like a hypocrite," muttered Mikayla.

As Margot walked to the door, she called over her shoulder, "That's because you are," she said with distinct humor in her voice. "I'll lock the door behind me."

As Mikayla heard the door close and the lock snap into place, she threw herself lengthwise onto the couch and let the pent-up tears go, hitting the cushions with her fist as they muffled her cries of anger. Finally she threw her head back and simply screamed, a long scream meaningless except for the sheer frustration that gave it voice.

As she waited for the echo to fade, she swallowed against her dry throat. "Well, that felt better," she said with a dark smile. She picked up her glass and Margot's coffee mug and carried them into the kitchen. Normally she'd let the maid clean up tomorrow, but she didn't want to see any trace of the other woman's presence right now. "Fucking bitch," she mumbled as she set the glass and mug in the sink. "Moral high ground. What a bunch of shit." She walked back into the living room, picking up the Harmony One remote control that ran pretty much her entire living room. "They've been married for five fucking years, they don't so much as look at anyone else, they don't drink, they don't smoke, they don't do drugs, they don't get arrested, and to top it all off they're gonna be the future fucking Moms of the Year. How in the name of Jesus, Mary and Joseph hangin' off the cross am I supposed to beat all _that_?"

She turned on the remote and hit the button marked Watch TV. She grumbled to herself as she waited for the system to power itself on and randomly select one of her favorite channels, the way she had the system programmed by the installers. "Oh, Gee, Bob," she said to herself sarcastically, "I really think that Hannah and Lola Montana are corrupting America's youth with their really horrible message of love and acceptance. Someone needs to stop them before we all start getting along. And that whole charity of theirs that gives clothes and food and whatever the fuck else to kids that don't have anything? Pure evil, if you ask me."

She laughed once, and for a moment she let herself enjoy the honest—if black—humor in her words. Then the television came up on E!, and Mikayla was treated to a quite lovely shot of Hannah and Lola Montana at the premiere of "Above and Beyond," both of them stunning in their gowns and smiles as they held hands while walking the red carpet. As much as Mikayla hated them, her respect for them was slowly growing, despite her wishes. She hadn't yet gotten them to compromise their principals, even when she pushed them. And she could completely understand them standing up to protect each other.

_It takes guts to stand up and be willing to sacrifice yourself to protect someone you love, not to take the easy way out. God knows I finally learned that one the hard way. _She leaned back on the couch and debated changing the channel.

"Fuck," she said softly, tossing the remote onto the coffee table without switching to another station. "Some nights I just can't freaking win."

The next morning saw a dark blue Trailblazer make its way along the curvy road leading down into Misty Hollow, Tennessee. Miley was driving, with Lilly in the passenger seat and Peyton and Melody in the back.

"We're gonna drop you two off at Mamaw's," Miley said, "then we have to run somewhere for a bit."

"Where are you goin'?" asked Peyton, composing a text message to send to one of her friends. Reception was spotty along the narrow mountain road, but she had previously informed her aunts that one particular spot in Mamaw's backyard had three bars of signal, more than sufficient to send and receive texts and phone calls. She had declined to reveal how long finding that one spot had taken, despite Miley's attempt to pry that information out of her.

Lilly looked over at Miley. No sign of fear and dread could be seen on her wife's face, nor was Lilly expecting to find any now when this subject came up. "It's someplace private," Lilly said carefully, not wanting to reveal more than Miley would be comfortable with. But as she spoke, she could feel a feeling of tingling warmth in her chest, a feeling from Miley that Lilly had learned to associate with trusting someone, usually with a secret. She reached over and took Miley's right hand. "Are you sure?" she asked Miley.

Miley glanced at Lilly and nodded with a thin smile. "Yeah, I'm sure," she said.

"Okay, that is just entirely creepy when you two talk without saying everything," said Melody, goosebumps rising on her arms.

Ignoring that last comment, Lilly said, "One of the first places we go whenever we come back here is to go see Miley's mom."

There was silence in the vehicle for a few seconds, broken when Melody asked, "But I thought that your mom was de—" The smack of Peyton's hand on her arm caused a startled Melody to break off her sentence abruptly.

Tears would have come to Miley if not for the comfort of Lilly's presence next to her, but with her best friend's support there was no need for tears. Not now, not ever again when it came to this subject. "She is," Miley said, being careful to make her voice light and friendly as she spoke. She didn't want to make her niece feel any worse than she probably already did for speaking without thinking. "We always go up to the cemetery and see her grave. We fill her in on how things are going, and it's like she can hear us when we're there."

Melody looked at her sister. Peyton silently mouthed the word _freaky_ to her younger sister, getting an earnest nod in reply as Melody rubbed her stinging arm.

It took twenty minutes to get the girls and their luggage unloaded at Ruthie Stewart's house. Miley and Lilly had bought two extra suitcases that they had given their nieces to put all their new purchases in, plus a garment bag to carry their dresses back home. The two of them had ignored the chastising look from their Mamaw, instead hurrying back out to their car to drive to the cemetery.

As they parked the four-wheel-drive vehicle in the small gravel cemetery, Miley and Lilly stepped out of the car, closing the doors with solid thumps. The fine gravel crunched under their feet as they walked through the woods, surrounded by trees mostly barren but with a few still sporting green needles. Wordlessly they walked in time, holding hands as they kept their eyes fixated on the clearing ahead of them, spotted with light and dark grey headstones of various sizes and shapes. They made their way through the front section of the cemetery, continuing to walk until they reached the far back corner of the cemetery.

They stopped in front of the familiar large headstone that marked the resting place of Miley's mother, Brooke Stewart. Lilly reached out to touch the stone, with Miley resting her hand atop the cold stone next to her, close enough that they were slightly overlapping.

"Hey Momma," Miley said quietly. "It's almost Christmas time, and we wanted to stop and say hi to you. We just got back into town for the holidays."

Lilly flipped her hand over, moving it underneath Miley's to hold her wife's hand, noticeably cold at the moment. "We have some good news for you, Mrs. Stewart," she said. "And I think you'll be proud of your daughter. I know I sure am."

"You'd also be proud of your daughter-in-law," said Miley, looking at Lilly teasingly. "Since she got me pregnant." She looked back down at the headstone, kneeling down to stare at the name chiseled into the stone on the right side. "Yeah, that's right, you're gonna be a grandma. Well, again. I know Jackson and Kaela beat us to it, but we had to work a little harder than they did." She felt Lilly move to stand behind her. She leaned against Lilly's warm legs as she felt Lilly's hand squeeze her shoulder through her coat. "I really hope you don't mind, Momma, but we want to name her after you. We talked about it, and Lilly said that she thought it would be great to name our first child after you. I think she knew that I wanted to do it even before I did." Now a tear trickled its way down her cheek, but Miley wasn't ashamed or embarrassed about these tears. "We miss you, Momma, but we know that you're still here, watchin' over us like you said you would."

"We love you," Lilly said softly. "And we always will. And your grandchildren will, too. We promise to raise them the best that we can, and we'll give them all the love that they could ever want. We promise." She helped Miley stand, giving her some room when Miley bent over to brush the needles and leaves off her knees.

As Miley bent over, she swept the debris from her jeans. She stood up and looked at Lilly, grinning playfully at the funny expression on her best friend's face. "What's that face for, Lil?" Miley said playfully. "You look like you've seen—" Miley felt her words freeze in her throat. She turned, following Lilly's gaze over the headstone to a blurry figure standing no farther than twenty feet away from them.

Lilly reached out and took Miley's hand, and immediately the blurriness faded, replaced by the same face and smile Miley still remembered all these years later, wearing a light blue jacket that Miley suddenly remembered wrapping as a Christmas present for her mother the year before she died. "H-hi, Momma," she stammered out, scarcely believing her eyes.

Lilly was speechless. Only through sheer willpower could she make her lips work enough to say, "Mrs. Stewart?" with a weak voice.

"Hello, Miley, Lilly," said Brooke Stewart, her voice just slightly different than Miley remembered it. Even Lilly could tell there was an ethereal quality to her speech, something too subtle to quantify but definitely present.

"Why can we see her and hear her, Miley?" asked Lilly, the pitch of her voice rising slightly as it tended to do when she was startled or nervous. "I mean, we're awake, not asleep. Right?"

Miley looked at her wife. "We've gotta be awake. I mean, we drove back here, we walked here, and we're standing up, not sitting down where we could fall asleep." Suddenly a flash of fear surged through Miley, and she turned to her mother and frantically asked, "We're not dead, are we?! Please tell me we're not dead!"

Brooke smiled. "No, Miley, you're not dead," she reassured the two young women staring at her. "And neither are you, Lilly."

"So why can we see you?" asked Lilly, still apprehensive. "When before we couldn't talk to you except in our dreams?"

"Love, Lilly," said Brooke, the smile of a proud mother on her face. "It was always the love between the two of you that let you see me and hear me in your dreams, and now that love has grown even more. It's now shared between three of you, not just two." She pointed with an open hand to Miley's stomach. "Your child was created from love, Miley, the strong, pure love the two of you share. No matter what anyone might say, your child is a gift straight from God, a sign of what miracles love can work if we believe in it with all our hearts." She smiled, then her face became serious as she said, "And if anyone can't see that, then they couldn't tell a possum from a parsnip!"

Miley immediately laughed, with Lilly sputtering and joining in the laughter just seconds later. After long seconds Miley got her laughter under control, then she said, "I still miss you, Momma."

"Oh, my little Miley girl," said Brooke, reaching out but stopping short of touching her daughter's cheek, "please don't miss me. I'm always gonna be there, watchin' over all of you. You just can't see me most of the time." Brooke looked at Lilly, and her face beamed. "Plus you've got the prettiest little wife I ever did see, there to hold you and love you every step of the way. She's gonna do a better job of watchin' out for you than I could."

"Thank you," said Lilly, her voice nearly a whisper. "Will our baby be able to see you?" she asked curiously.

Brooke looked puzzled for a moment. "Well, I don't rightly know," she finally said. "But if she's as smart and has a big, lovin' heart like her mommas do, then I bet she just might," she added with a smile as she faded away, leaving only a scent on the breeze like that of wildflowers and rain.

"Goodbye, Momma," Miley said, looking up to the sky. "We both love you."

Lilly put her arm around Miley's shoulders. "All three of us love you," she called out, a bit louder than Miley. "And Merry Christmas," she added with a bright smile.

**Author's Afterword:** I've been thinking quite seriously about making a change in the plans for the next few stories. This story is, obviously, the fifth one in my Lileyverse series, and I had planned on writing two more after this one to complete a septology. However, I think that there's just still too much that I want our heroines to experience to fit into two more stories after this one. Therefore, I think I'm going to expand the series to a total of nine stories. Yes, I like odd numbers if you're wondering.

If anyone was offended at Mikayla's lack of regard for religion (and pretty much everything else except herself), feel free to take it up with her. She has her reasons, whether we would see them as justified or not. I have to be careful to not get into too deep a discussion about her motivations just yet, because that would be revealing too much at this point. Hope everyone enjoyed this chapter! See you in a bit!

-- Jo --


	13. Chapter 13: Oh, It's On

**Author's Note:** Okay, here's a nice long chapter for you to try and make up for taking so long to get it posted. Heck, even picking the right intro music was a chore. I couldn't so much as get anything typed for it until tonight, and I changed it three or four times while I was finishing this chapter! However, I'm happy with my final choice, because it works on many levels for this chapter. Now go read! (Please.)

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist or publication mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo P.

Chapter 13: Oh, It's On

_So, may I have your attention_

_Look in my direction_

_Here you'll see the sun never sets_

_No, we don't have to worry_

_Never in a hurry_

_One by one the stars go to bed_

_And we step into the spotlight again_

--Hannah Montana,"Spotlight"

The chiming of Lilly's cell phone drew her attention away from the game of cards being played at Ruthie Stewart's kitchen table. She had never seen anyone play Rook before, but she didn't imagine that most families took it as seriously as the Stewarts did. "Hello?" she said into her cell phone as she stepped out into the winter night, shivering in the biting cold.

"_Lola?"_

Lilly smiled at the sound of Jen Kittrell's voice. "Hey Jen," she replied cheerily, trying to keep the shivering she felt building in her muscles out of her voice as she spoke. "What could make you call us out here?"

"_Some news you and Hannah need to hear."_

_That_ got Lilly's attention. "Okay... What is it?"

"_It seems that not everyone at Dyseni is against you and Hannah. In fact, there are still quite a few staffers out there who miss her."_

"No surprise. I figure the spoiled princess and her evil stepmother are making enemies quick out there."

"_Is Margot really her stepmother?"_ asked Jen, surprised.

Lilly laughed. "No, just a running joke between Hannah and me," she clarified.

"_Oh. Anyway, I got the most interesting phone call this morning from someone who still works at Dyseni. It seems that a certain bratty singer has this top secret appearance scheduled on CNN's _Nancy Grace_ show tomorrow, where she's going to be slamming the two of you for your 'immoral' behavior."_

"Oh, you have got to be kidding," muttered Lilly. "Before Christmas? Of all times?"

"_Apparently they're taking a religious angle on things. Mikayla's really playing up the Catholic thing now. Even though nobody really believes it, she's doing a good job of selling it to the media out here, and they're eating it up. The source that tipped me off said she was tired of the brat misusing her religion as a way to attack you."_

Lilly put her hand on her forehead. The cold was slowly overpowering her body heat, especially now that it was dark outside. "Okay, Jen, thanks for the heads up. We'll avoid the television tomorrow."

"_No no! I don't want you to avoid it!"_ Jen said suddenly, then there was a pause. _"Is there a network affiliate close to the two of you out there?"_

Lilly looked up the stars, twinkling like a field of diamonds in the blackness of the night sky. "I guess there's one within a few hours of here," she said. "Maybe Knoxville, and I know Nashville would have some. Why?"

"_I want the two of you to go on the Nancy Grace show too. If they want to launch some surprise attack, then I think it's only fair we strike back when they least expect it."_

"Which would be right then and there," Lilly said, nodding her head. "Nice work, Jen."

"_You pay for the best. I try to deliver."_

"I'll tell Hannah. We'll call you back in just a few minutes with some names and numbers for television stations here."

"_As long as they've got a studio and are equipped to handle satellite uplinks we should be good to go. Soon as you give me some numbers I'll make the calls. Do you two need any clothes or anything?"_

"No, we came prepared," Lilly said, smiling as she involuntarily shivered once again. "Look, I need to go back inside. It's cold out here."

"_Put on a fucking coat."_

"Love you too, Jen," said Lilly, grinning. "Call you right back."

"_Okay."_

As the line went dead, Lilly closed her phone and went back inside, basking in the warmth of the brightly lit country home that she had grown to love over the last seven years.

"Everything okay, hon?" asked Miley, gazing at Lilly with both general interest and concern.

"Yeah," said Lilly. And in truth she knew it was going to be okay, because she and Miley had each other. Their love was and would be forever, and everything else would pass. "Come in the bedroom just a minute; I need to talk to you about something."

As they went into the guest bedroom that they used when staying with Miley's grandmother, Lilly closed the door behind them. "Jen just called to tell us that Mikayla is going on CNN tomorrow night to launch some kind of attack on us because we're 'immoral.' She didn't give any details other than that, but it's probably more of the same old crap that she's tried to say about us before."

Miley sighed as she sat down on their bed. "She's persistent, that's for sure." She reached up and smiled, then she took Lilly's hand and tugged her down onto the bed beside her. However, Lilly turned that tug into a playful tackle, knocking Miley backwards and straddling her legs. She quickly wrestled Miley's arms down, pinning them down beside her while being careful to not lean directly on her wife's pregnant abdomen.

"You give?" asked Lilly, smiling from her rather dominant position.

Even though Miley was in much better shape than she had been years ago, she was still no match for Lilly's strength plus the leverage her wife held over her. "Yeah, I give," she huffed, looking away in a fake pout only to jump and shriek as Lilly tickled her bare ribs underneath her shirt. "Your hands are freezing!" Miley yelped, trying to get away.

Lilly looked down at her wife, and Miley could see the spark of love in those bright blue eyes fan into a flame of desire. "Then I'll warm them up," Lilly said, sliding back off Miley's legs and onto the floor. She reached forward and grabbed Miley's shorts, pulling them and her panties off with a smooth, steady motion that put Miley's body into a full state of arousal as she kept her eyes locked onto Lilly's.

"Is that door locked?" asked Miley, her heart starting to pound with both love and lust as it always did when Lilly got this way with her.

"Uh huh," mumbled Lilly as she climbed onto the bed beside Miley, on her knees. She reached down and back with her right hand as she leaned forward, meeting her wife's lips with her own as Miley lifted her back off the bed to meet her lover and wrap her arms around her shoulders. Miley gasped as she felt Lilly's chilly fingers slide into her, one at a time, no more and no less until each digit had had its worshipful turn inside her.

"That feels better," whispered Lilly as she kissed Miley hungrily.

Miley reached down with her left arm and grabbed Lilly's right hand, which had made its way up to her neck, and shoved that hand back down toward her hips. "They need to warm up some more," she managed to get out between hot kisses, then Lilly lifted her into a state where she was unable to speak coherently at all.

Twenty minutes later the two of them lay underneath the covers of the bed, wrapped against each other's naked body. "Mmm, that was really good," said Miley happily as she ran a hand through her thick hair. "Great way to start the night."

"Glad you enjoyed it," said Lilly proudly. "And I have to say you did a very nice job yourself."

Miley smiled as she looked over at her best friend who had pledged her life to her. "Why, thank you Mrs. Truscott," Miley said cheerily.

Lilly let a giggle slip out as she replied, "You are most welcome, Mrs. Truscott!" with the same cheerful voice that Miley had just used. They hugged each other tightly, neither wanting to let go. "That was Jen who had called us, hon," Lilly finally said, reluctant to break the afterglow with business. "She said that the bratty princess is going to go on _Nancy Grace_ tomorrow and try to sling mud at us."

Miley stiffened reflexively. "I'm gettin' really tired of her pullin' this shit," Miley swore softly.

"Jen wants you to find a local network affiliate here so Hannah and Lola can make a surprise appearance on the show and respond," said Lilly. She could feel the anger seething inside her best friend, and she didn't really like it very much. "Honey, she's not worth getting this upset," Lilly whispered against Miley's cheek.

"You've never done anything against her, Lilly, except stick up for me. Hannah I could see her bein' angry at, but not you. When she goes after you, it pushes me really close to losin' my temper."

Lilly ran her fingernails lightly up and down Miley's chest, trailing them over the soft skin between her wife's breasts from the base of her neck to the curve of her pregnant abdomen. "We're a package deal, Miles. You know that. She goes after one of us, she goes after both of us. That's how we do things. And I _can_ handle myself, you know."

Miley rolled over to look into Lilly's eyes, a hazy blue in the dim light of their room. "I know you can, Lilly. I just like being able to protect you, too."

"I know, and thank you." Lilly kissed Miley on the lips softly, smiling as they pulled back.

"And I'm sorry about these hormones. They make my temper want to flare up somethin' fierce whenever somebody pushes my buttons."

"Hmm, they also make you horny a lot more, too." Lilly nuzzled her face into Miley's neck, trailing soft pecks down her lover's neck to kiss the curve of Miley's collarbone. "And I'm not complaining. It just takes some getting used to that I can't lie on top you right now when we make love."

Miley ran a hand through Lilly's blonde curls, wet with sweat. "You seem to have adapted pretty well," she said smugly. "And it's only for a few more months, hon."

"I know," Lilly sighed, "I guess I've gotten used to us doing whatever we want whenever we want, and it's just frustrating sometimes when we can't."

"Hey," said Miley, staring deep into her best friend's eyes, "are you having second tho—"

"No!" said Lilly quickly. "No, Miles. Never. Not about our baby and not about having her now!" But something did have her confused, Lilly knew that. It had been getting worse over the last few days, and today she had felt that confusion like a pressure deep inside her body.

"Then what's goin' on?" Miley asked, and her bright eyes were full of concern for her partner. "I can feel that somethin' inside has you all confused, Lilly Bear. Been that way for a day or two." She kissed Lilly on the tip of her nose, getting an amused smile from her wife. "Whatever it is, you can tell me, baby. Let me talk to you about it, and I know we can work it out, whatever it is."

As the realization washed over Lilly, she felt dumb for not realizing sooner what had caused her so much worry and uncertainty. "That's it, Miles! You can feel it!"

Miley looked at Lilly, not following her partner's logic for a moment. "What? That I can tell that you're worryin' about somethin'?"

"Yes! And I can feel you, too!" Lilly smiled, proud to have figured it out. "The mood swings, Miles! The weird feelings that you're having because of the pregnancy! I'm feeling some of them with you!"

Miley sighed. "Haven't seemed to have any of the weird food cravings," she muttered.

"What, like, more than usual?" Lilly replied flippantly.

"Good point."

The next day saw Hannah and Lola Montana waiting inside the studio of Knoxville's NBC affiliate. They were happily posing for pictures and signing autographs for the station's employees, and they had even arrived early to be interviewed for several of the station's upcoming shows. Jen had indeed taken care of things last night after Miley and Lilly had called back with the station's telephone number, and in just a few minutes the _Nancy Grace_ show would begin on CNN. The satellite uplink had been established, and all the two young women needed to do was take their seats in front of the cameras and monitors.

Lilly looked into Miley's eyes as she checked her wife's dusting of makeup. "You look beautiful," she said with a smile as Miley performed the same inspection on Lilly.

"So do you," said Miley in reply, giving Lilly a soft tweak on the end of her nose. Together they turned and stepped up onto the dais where their chairs were located. A monitor had been placed so they could see the video feed from CNN, and they had both been given earpieces to listen to the audio feed. They remained silent as the show began, listening through the introduction given for Mikayla. Their audio feeds weren't supposed to be on just yet, but Miley and Lilly had now been in the celebrity business long enough to be careful with what they said, even when they supposedly weren't being recorded.

In fact, the show went fairly well while discussing Mikayla's career. Nancy Grace herself wasn't present; instead another journalist named Faye Keller was hosting the show while Grace was away. Miley and Lilly both noted that Mikayla quickly avoided any discussion about what she had been up to for the few years she had been out of the music industry, instead shifting the interview's focus back to her successful return. Miley and Lilly looked at each other the second time the younger woman dodged the question, but they still remained silent because they knew they could discuss things later in private. Finally the interview reached a turning point.

"So Mikayla, it seems that there's no love lost between you and Hannah Montana. From the moment you came onto the music scene several years ago, there were rumors that the two of you were significantly less friendly behind the scenes than you were when the cameras were rolling."

Mikayla smiled and tossed her full head of glossy black hair. "Oh, she was worried about me the first time we ever met. She put on a real show of acting friendly, but I could tell that she was ready to do everything she could to keep me from taking her fans from her."

Miley's mouth shot open, only to be covered by Lilly's quick hand. "We'll get our turn, sweetheart," Lilly whispered. "Be patient. Let her give them some more lies first."

Miley closed her mouth and nodded, but inside she could feel the anger starting to build. Lilly glanced over at her wife. She could feel her own heart starting to speed up in time with Miley's, but even without their empathic connection Lilly could tell that Miley's temper was starting to build. She reached over and took Miley's left hand into her right, giving her a light squeeze that succeeded in getting Miley to return her gaze and smile. Immediately Lilly could feel Miley's inner fury ease slightly, but it refused to fade entirely.

After a particularly long and seemingly well-rehearsed speech on how unnatural homosexuality was and what a terrible example the Montanas were setting for girls and young women across the country, Miley was practically hopping up and down in her seat in her eagerness to retaliate. That chance finally arrived.

"Well, now it's time to hear from our other special guests tonight," Keller said, turning to look into the camera. The look of surprise of Mikayla's face was both notable and amusing as Keller said, "Joining us via satellite uplink from Tennessee are Hannah and Lola Montana, and I expect they have some things they'd like to say."

"What?!" shouted Mikayla. "I thought—"

"Oh yeah, we've got somethin' to say!" Miley said loudly, leaning forward in her seat. "First, Mikayla, I already told you that I really don't care if you're successful or not, because you are most definitely _not_ a threat to me, and you never were. You had a lot of attitude when you started, but that was about all you had, and it looks like you've still got plenty of it!"

"I've got enough to take you down a peg or two," Mikayla snapped back, "if you'd ever quit hiding behind your lesbian buddy!"

"Wow," said Lilly, interrupting her wife before the cycle of shouts could continue any further, "I think that might be a record for the fastest we've ever been called lesbians in a hateful manner during an interview." There were a few snickers in the local studio at Lilly's dry remark, and it seemed that even the host had to stifle a grin.

"I would appreciate it if everyone refrained from any name-calling during this interview," Keller said, politely looking first at Mikayla and then into the camera.

"That would be much appreciated," said Lilly pleasantly, which seemed to irritate Mikayla even more. Seizing the chance, Lilly asked, "So what is your big problem with Hannah and me being in love, being happily married, and starting a family, Mikayla?" _Beside the fact that you have none of the above_, she almost said, but she managed to catch the words before they left her mouth.

"Homosexuality goes completely against God's will, just like it says in the Bible."

"And where in the Bible does it say that?" asked Lilly, adding a smile to her question. "Do you have a particular book, or maybe a chapter and verse, or something like that? Because I still like that one part that says that we're neither Jew nor gentile, man nor woman, but instead we are all as one in the eyes of God and Jesus."

"How about the one where the devil can quote scriptures to suit his—or _her_—own ends?" Mikayla spat back.

"Or maybe put on some black hair extensions, heavily promote a so-so album and jump onto cable talk shows to try and stir up some publicity?" said Miley, venom dripping from her words. "Oh, wait, _you_ did that already!"

Mikayla sat up straighter in her seat. Now that she had recovered from the initial surprise, she found herself starting to enjoy this battle. "It's unnatural for two women or two men to be in love and try to live like they're married! It's not what God wants!" She was having to force herself to remember the religious angle at this point, when she really wanted to just call Hannah Montana... Well, lots of bad things. Things that would get her fined by the FCC.

"And why exactly is it unnatural?" asked Lilly.

"Because marriage is supposed to be between a man and a woman! Why can't you see that?" shouted Mikayla.

Miley leaned forward even more, teetering close to the edge of her seat. "And what could some man give me that I can't get from my best friend, who understands me and loves me more than anyone else ever could?" she said hotly. "Or are you gonna say that God wants a woman to be with a man because that's how we reproduce?"

"Yes! That's exactly what I'm—"

"OPEN YOUR EYES, MIKAYLA!" Miley shouted as she stood up, lifting the bottom of her shirt to show her abdomen, starting to clearly show her pregnancy at this stage. "Lola and I are having a baby together! My eggs, her sperm, made from her stem cells! God let us have this baby through medicine and science, and we're grateful every day for her!"

"My sperm," said Lilly with a grin as she looked at Miley. "That still sounds so weird."

"It's unnatural," said Mikayla, and she felt a shiver run up her back as the words left her mouth. "Having children should be natural—"

"It's hard to get more natural than a rattlesnake," said Miley coldly, "and they'll kill ya as sure as anything else." She glared into the camera connecting her and Lilly to the CNN studio as she said, "I don't see many houses growing out of the ground. Maybe we shouldn't live in them because they're _unnatural_, too? Oh, and cars! Let's just quit driving since they're _unnatural_. And we could quit using cell phones, and computers, and television, and books while we're at it!" She took another look at the monitor showing Mikayla's furious face. "Oh, and honey? Those boobs you've got are about the most unnatural things I've seen all week."

"You _bitch!_" screamed Mikayla shrilly. "What makes you so much better than me, that you get to act this way and people still love you?"

"I'm actin' this way because of the mean, hateful things you say about me, my wife, and millions of people around the world, just because you don't agree with who we fall in love with or who we're attracted to! Somebody has to stand up and tell you what a mean, nasty, hateful, bigoted piece of _shit_ you are, and I'm happy to be the one to do it!"

Miley paused to catch her breath before she said in a calmer voice, "I don't care what kind of a music career you have, Mikayla. And whether you believe it or not, I don't care about whether or not you're more successful than I am, either. I haven't for a long time. What I _do_ care about is the woman I love and the baby we're havin' together, and when you start attackin' them, I fight back! Now, I've tried to take the high road and have some class when it comes to you and your big mouth, but apparently you just don't get that. So right here, tonight, I'm tellin' you clearly. You want a fight?" Miley paused, then she said, "You got one."

Lilly turned to look at the engineer in the studio. "We're done," she said flatly. "Turn it off." She got up out of her seat and walked off the raised platform of the soundstage, removing her microphone as she did so. She turned to look at the cameras and said loudly, "I said, Turn it _off!_"

Miley got up out of her seat and hurried to catch up with Lilly, her heart still pounding from the vicious exchange between herself and Mikayla. "Lola," she called out to her wife, but Lilly didn't seem to hear her. "Lola!"

Lilly kept walking, not trusting herself to speak until Miley grabbed her arm. "You okay?" Miley asked as Lilly turned around.

"No," Lilly said, her voice eerily flat. She refused to turn around to look at Miley, which bothered Miley more than just about anything her wife could have said just then. "I'm not saying anything to you until we're in the car, where no one else can hear us."

Miley felt her heart pound as they walked out of the television station. She managed to thank the receptionist as they left, but her mouth went completely dry as they approached the rental Blazer they had driven over to the studio. Miley unlocked the door, opening Lilly's passenger door for her best friend to slide into the seat. Lilly still didn't speak or even look at Miley's face, which did little to assuage Miley's fears at that moment.

The walk around the Blazer was a ponderously long one, and Miley found herself wishing it would go on even longer than it did. Whatever Lilly was keeping pent up, it was going to be ugly when she finally let it out, true love or not.

Miley opened her door and climbed into the Blazer, starting the engine and pulling out of the parking lot. Once they were on the main road, they removed their wigs at the same time, with Lilly taking Miley's Hannah wig and putting it into the silk bag she was carrying in her oversized purse. Lola's wig similarly disappeared into another silk bag next to the first, also inside the large purse. Only after that was done did Lilly finally open her mouth to speak.

"Miley May Stewart Truscott, I love you with every bit of my body, heart and soul, but right now I'm so pissed off at you that I can't see straight," Lilly said carefully. "Do you realize what you just did in there?"

"Lilly, I—"

"DO YOU?!" Lilly shouted.

Miley thought carefully before she opened her mouth. Part of her was getting angry at the way Lilly was talking to her—_her_, the woman carrying their baby—but another part of her was ashamed for losing her temper and stooping to Mikayla's level, on live television no less. Yet another part of Miley was confused, thrown into a tailspin at being talked to this way by the woman she loved, and it was this part that very softly uttered, "What _did_ I do?"

"You just called her out, Miley, on live television! You just challenged her! That means not only did you lower us to her level, you gave that crazy bitch and her stupid comments _respectability!_ That's what you did!"

Miley carefully said, "I didn't say anything about you, sweetheart. I told her that _I_ was giving her a fight if she wanted one."

Lilly sighed, and now she finally turned to look at her wife. "Miles, we're partners, remember? If you're going to wrestle her in the mud, then I'm going to be there with you. But you could have at least asked me first before pulling some stunt like that." Lilly turned to watch the cars pass by next to them. "I bet that clip's going to be on every stinking news program and gossip show by the end of the night. And every newspaper in the morning."

Miley reached over to take Lilly's hand, and there was a slight hesitation before Lilly took it. But take her best friend's hand she did, and she laced her fingers among Miley's the way she always did, giving Miley a fleeting feeling of joy during her regret at losing her cool earlier. "What do you want me to do about it?" she asked, trying to quell her temper, still burning dangerously hot. "Turn around and go apologize to her for standing up for my family?"

Lilly whirled her head to glare at Miley. "No, Miley, of course I don't want you to do that," she said coldly.

"That just what _do_ you want me to do, because you're chewin' my ass over it, but I don't remember _you_ offering anything helpful when she was callin' me a bitch!"

"That's because you were doing a really swell job of stuffing your foot into your mouth at the time!" Lilly replied, her own voice rising in volume in response to Miley's yelling. "And you don't need to get so angry! It's not good for the baby!"

"_Don't you try and bring her into this!"_ Miley shouted angrily. "She didn't do anything to—" Miley froze, suddenly realizing that she and Lilly were yelling at each other for no good reason. _What are we thinking? _"Lilly, I..."

"Don't, Miles," Lilly said quickly, holding up a hand to stop her wife's words. She waited a few seconds before saying, "I still love you, Miley, and nothing can ever change that, but I think it's best if we don't talk for a bit while I calm down. Not until I can cool off some more, because I really don't want to fight with you or argue with you over our Christmas time here. You mean too much to me and our time here means too much to me for us to get into a fight over this. So give me a little time to work through this, okay?"

"Okay," said Miley, her lips going numb as she processed the soft but stinging words she was hearing Lilly, _her_ Lilly, her wife and the woman she absolutely had to have to continue to live, say. But neither of them released each other's hand, not for the entire fifty-minute drive back to Misty Hollow and Ruthie Stewart's house, and Miley drew strength from that simple contact they continued to share.

As the car came to a stop in the driveway, Miley switched off the engine. They looked at each other, and Lilly gave a Miley a soft but guarded smile that nearly broke Miley's heart. It was rare indeed for a barrier to be present between them, and the knowledge that her sharp tongue and fiery temper had raised that damned barrier threatened to break Miley's heart.

"I'm going to go down to the barn and think for a bit," Lilly said. She turned and got out of the Blazer, leaving her heavy coat on over Lola's clothes as she walked through the field, frozen ground softly crunching under her feet as she made her way to the large barn across the field.

When Lilly's door closed, Miley slumped her head forward against the steering wheel. "Fuck, fuck, fuck!" she swore softly, finally slapping the steering wheel with an open palm. She looked down at her tingling hand idly, wondering how quick it would take for it to turn red. _What do I do? Do I go back on television and apologize to everyone for losing my cool? Do I apologize to Mikayla for letting my pregnant hormones run away with me, for letting her bitchy mouth finally push me enough to snap back at her? Do I apologize to my fans for yelling and swearing and essentially calling Mikayla out for a fight?_

She got out of the car and turned to look down at the barn. She could just see Lilly's figure step into the large barn, where at least she'd be out of the chilling wind. She, however, was very much still in the wind's path, and its icy teeth bit into her skin as it blew angrily. "Don't mess with me tonight, wind," she said quietly. "It won't work out well for either of us." She put her head down and went inside, walking up the steps with a heaviness in her heart that she knew Lilly was feeling too.

As she went inside she could see that Mamaw was cooking in the kitchen. Apparently her leg was doing better, because she was working away at making something. Miley didn't really register the smell of the food; instead she immediately thought about how Lilly would be right over there, offering to help long enough to sample whatever it was Mamaw was cooking for them.

Miley hurried into their room, barely making it inside and closing the door before the tears fell uncontrollably. It was always bad enough on those rare occasions when they fought, but with her being pregnant it was ten times worse on Miley. She threw off her coat and Hannah's clothes, flinging them on the closed suitcase holding the rest of Hannah's and Lola's clothes before throwing herself onto the bed and burying her head in a pillow. Then she could finally let out all the regret, all the sorrow, all the anger and rage and fury and fear that she had coursing through her mind at that moment. After crying until she felt numb, Miley rolled over and took several deep breaths, finally opening her eyes to stare at the ceiling. As she focused on trying to control her breathing and pounding heart, Miley could feel deep inside her a stinging agony that nearly made her start sobbing all over again.

_Lilly's pain._ The anguish that her best friend was feeling, made worse by being apart from the love and support of her other half, just like Miley was right now. She could feel it now that her own emotions had been temporarily purged, and it brought her to a sobering revelation. _It doesn't matter what the hell I say to Mikayla, or to my record company, or to my fans or even my family. All that matters is what I say to Lilly. What I do for Lilly. __Everything else comes second to her._ She reached down and rubbed her stomach, daring a tiny smile. _To our family._

Miley reached over and grabbed her phone from the nightstand. She found the number she was looking for and hit the Send button.

"_Hello?"_ said a female voice.

"Hey," Miley said. "Where are you?"

"_Hey to you, too, Miley. I'm, uh, at Daddy and Noel's. We went out to dinner, and we're just sittin' out here in the car talkin'. Ron's wantin' to go inside and see the house."_

Left unsaid was just how much Luanne _didn't_ want to go inside the house that she had grown up in, but Miley knew. "How about I give you an escape? Because I need you to do somethin' for me."

The relief in Luanne's voice was evident as she replied, _"You got it."_

"Okay, pick me up at Mamaw's. I need you to take me into town real fast."

"_On my way. I'll let Ron stay here with Noel and Daddy while I come pick you up. Be there in just a couple minutes."_

"Be careful, sis."

"_I will, Miley. See you in just a few."_

Miley hopped up and began putting on some regular clothes. She had some things to do to try and make things right with the person most important in the world to her.

That particular person was sitting in the Stewart barn at the moment, legs and knees pulled up to her chest as she sat atop a large pile of hay bales. It was chilly out here, but the horses that were currently inside the barn provided a little heat, and that heat was concentrated up in the hayloft where Lilly was sitting. She finally pulled her phone out of her pocket and dialed one of the numbers on her speed dial list. As soon as she heard the other person pick up, she said, "Hey Jen, this is Lilly."

"_Well, this is a surprise,"_ said Jen Kittrell. There was a pause, then she said, _"You better not be calling to tell me we have to fly back to L.A., because we just fucking got to Hawaii and I'll be royally pissed if we have to get back on that fucking airplane for another umpteen hours."_

Despite her heart aching, Lilly couldn't help but smile at her friend's brusque manner. "No, you don't have to fly back to L.A."

"_Well, thank fucking God."_

Lilly shook her head. "You're taking advantage of the baby not being able to hear you right now, aren't you?"

"_Who, me?"_ replied Jen, and the humor in her voice couldn't have been clearer. _"Hey, I have to enjoy the opportunity when it pops up, right? And anyway, you must be wanting to tell me something if you're calling me from wherever in Tennessee you are."_

"Right," Lilly said, checking her phone's signal again. _Wow. Two bars up here. Never thought to check the hayloft._ "I want you to start looking into something when you get back to L.A., Jen."

"_Sure. What is it?"_

Lilly was silent as she considered what she was about to do. It crossed several lines that she wasn't entirely comfortable crossing, but when it came to her Miley there was no line that she wouldn't cross. Not if it had to be crossed to protect the woman she loved. Whether they were fighting at the moment was irrelevant; they'd both cool off and make up soon enough. But this couldn't really wait; it had to be done now, to get things into motion. "I need you to start digging up anything you can find on Mikayla, Jen."

There was a pause, then Jen said, _"Excuse me? That sounded like you wanted me to—" _

"Start digging up dirt on her, yes. That's exactly what I want you do. There's no big rush, so take your time and do it as quietly as you can. But do whatever it takes, pay whatever it takes to get something on that bitch. I mean, something or some_things _that can ruin her and her career."

After a long delay, Jen's voice finally said, _"Wow."_

"She got Miles to lose her temper tonight, on live TV. And I'm afraid it's going to get ugly, Jen." Lilly felt a tear slide out of her right eye and trickle down her cheek. "I can't let her hurt Miley, Jen. I _won't_ let her hurt Miley. And if that means I have to get dirty to protect Miles, then I'll get dirty."

"_Okay,"_ Jen said, somberly. _"I'll be careful to keep it silent."_

"That would be good," Lilly said, wiping another tear out of her left eye. "And Jen..." Lilly shook her head, not quite believing she was about to say this. "Let's just keep this between us for right now, okay? I don't want Miley to know, not unless she has to."

"_Okay. You're the boss."_

"Thank you," Lilly said as her chin started to quiver. "Enjoy your trip, okay? And I'm sorry for asking you to do this."

"_It's okay,"_ said Jen, and the concern for her friend in her voice was now strongly present, the earlier gruffness completely washed away. _"Do you need to talk about something? I mean, I know I'm not the most sensitive person, but you _are_ my friend."_

"Thank you," said Lilly, "but I'll be okay. We just had a fight, and I'm still mad at her for losing her temper during that TV show, but I think it was just a combination of that little skank pushing her buttons and all those pregnancy hormones that made her lose it. We'll be okay, we're just taking some time to cool off before we talk about it. We learned that worked well a long time ago."

"_Okay. But if you need to talk, I guess you can call me."_

Lilly smiled. "Nice to know you care."

"_Don't fucking tell anybody, okay? I don't want that shit to get out."_

"Your secret is safe with me, Jen. I promise."

"_Go tell your wife you love her. Then screw her brains out to show her how much you love her."_

Lilly nodded. "I can do that. Thanks, Jen."

"_You're welcome. I'll catch up with you in a couple of weeks."_

"Okay. Have fun." Lilly ended the call and closed her phone. She looked over at the roof of the barn, at the door that opened out to reveal the glittering stars scattered across the night sky. Lilly stood up and unlatched the door, swinging it out and open. She stood with her arms folded in front of her for a long time, looking up at the stars above her. She and Miley would be fine in a few minutes, after tempers had cooled and hurt feelings had calmed down. Their love was much more powerful than one little fight, and the stings from that fight would quickly fade. But Lilly still felt dirty for what she had asked her friend to do, and even though it was done to protect her wife it would take some time for that unclean feeling to go away. She only hoped that when the time came, she would make the right decision on what to do with whatever Jen would find. For now, she could only sit down in the hay and shiver slightly as she pulled her legs back up to her chest and tugged her coat around herself tightly, gazing up into the vastness of the Tennessee winter sky.

Fifty-two minutes later the small gold Saturn that belonged to Luanne's stepmother Noel pulled up to Ruthie Stewart's house. Luanne got out and walked around to the passenger side, snickering as she walked. She opened the door, revealing a mass of flowers that did a very nice job of hiding her sister Miley. "The door's open, in case you can't tell behind all those flowers," she said smartly.

"Ha ha," replied Miley, her face still hidden behind the assortment of roses ranging from red to pink to white. Miley carefully moved the gigantic bouquet of flowers, easing it out ahead of her body as she climbed out of the car.

"Why did you buy so many flowers, Miley?" asked Luanne, knowing the answer but still feeling like _someone_ had to question her sister's sanity for buying six dozen roses over a relatively small fight.

As Miley stood, she lowered the bouquet so that she could look into Luanne's eyes. "Because I'm pregnant and insane," she said, her expression perfectly serious.

Luanne looked back into her sister's blue eyes for a few seconds before she said, "Fair enough," and turned to lead the way to the house.

As Miley stepped into the warm house while Luanne held the door, she heard her grandmother exclaim, "Lord have mercy! Did a floral shop explode?"

Miley looked around the flowers to her Mamaw. "Where is she, Mamaw?" she asked somberly.

Ruthie's expression turned from a playful one to a look of concern. "She's in your room, ladybug," Ruthie said softly. "She just came in a minute ago, right before you two pulled in the driveway. Looked like she was half froze to death, but the stubborn thing wouldn't let me give her a blanket or anything. She just said she'd wait on you."

"Thanks, Mamaw," Miley said before turning to look at her secret sister. "And thank you, Lu. For everything."

Luanne grinned. "You've both been there for me, Miley. And I'll always be there for you two. Now go apologize to your wife and show you that you love her."

"Count on it," Miley said, a smile easing across her face. "Night, Lu."

"Night, Miles."

Miley stole down the hall, stopping to knock lightly on the closed door to their guest room. When she didn't get an answer she fumbled until she could turn the doorknob, then she pushed the door open carefully. The room was dark, lit only by the light spilling out of the bathroom. Miley eased into the bedroom, pushing the door closed with her foot. She could hear the shower running in the bathroom, and she guessed that Lilly was warming up already. She carefully walked up to the bathroom door, then she pushed it open as she said, "Hey sweetheart!" She stepped into the steamy bathroom, saying, "I got something for you, and I am so—"

She stopped in mid-sentence as she saw Lilly sitting on a towel spread on the bathroom floor, naked but completely dry as she sat curled up while the shower ran behind her. "Lilly?" Miley asked, her heart full of concern. "What's wrong, baby?"

Lilly looked up, and Miley could see that she had been crying. Her face was still red, and her eyes were swollen from the tears that had obviously been shed. But as Lilly's eyes saw Miley and the massive bouquet of roses, a smile appeared on Lilly Truscott's face, and at that moment Miley Truscott would have sworn that there was no more beautiful sight on earth.

Lilly stood, no concern for her nakedness as she rushed to throw her arms around her wife. Miley managed to shift the vase holding the roses to her right hand as Lilly flung herself against her best friend, holding on as though her life depended on the contact between them.

_Maybe it does,_ Miley thought. _I think both our lives depend on it._ She peeked out of the corner of her eye to make sure she was setting the vase of roses on the bathroom counter, far enough away from the edge to where she wouldn't worry about it falling, then she wrapped her other arm around Lilly.

"I'm so sorry, Miley," Lilly said against Miley's shoulder. "I'm so, so sorry."

"Lilly, sweetheart,_ I'm_ the one who's sorry. I lost my temper and I wouldn't have hurt or embarrassed you for the world and I just want to tell you how much I love you," Miley babbled right before Lilly kissed her on the lips, the lingering chill on her wife's lips startling Miley briefly. After a long and longing kiss Miley said, "Honey, were you outside the whole time I was gone?"

Lilly nodded as she looked into Miley's bright blue eyes, trying to draw all the heat she could from her true love. "I needed to think," she said simply.

"You couldn't think somewhere warm?" Miley said, trying to lighten the mood.

Lilly shook her head. "I didn't want to be warm. Not without you."

"Oh, Lilly..."

"And I didn't want to get in the shower, not until you were back here and could get in with me." She looked down at the roses beside them, finally registering them. "Oh, Miley! Where the heck did you find all those this late in the day?"

Miley looked down at the roses. "Around," she finally said. "Lu drove me into town." Left unsaid were the details about going to two grocery stores and one Wal-Mart until she found all the roses she was looking for. "Do you like them?"

Lilly smiled even more broadly now, and Miley became acutely aware of just how naked her partner of over seven years was. And how closely she was snuggled against Miley's body. And how badly Miley wanted her own clothes off at that moment, but she was unwilling to let Lilly go to take them off.

"I love them," Lilly said, her smile once again bright enough to shame the sun as far as Miley was concerned. "But I love you even more. Thank you for going and getting them for me, Miley." She kissed Miley again, and Miley felt her heart completely melt with love.

"I feel terrible about losing my temper and going off like that, sweetheart. I should have talked to you first before I did anything like—"

Lilly silenced Miley by placing a finger on her wife's lips. "Hush," she said tenderly. "We've apologized, we forgive each other, and it's time to put that in the past where it belongs."

"We live in the present," Miley said, finally allowing herself to smile freely.

"Yes," said Lilly. "And in the present I want to take a shower with my amazingly sexy wife and have her warm me up."

Miley released Lilly long enough to pull off her shoes, then she stood and pushed Lilly back to the shower. Lilly grinned and slid back the shower curtain, stepping into the warm water with a contented sigh. But when Miley immediately followed her under the water's spray, Lilly's eyes shot open. "Miles! You still have your clothes on!" she said quickly.

"Not for long," Miley said with her cocky grin that Lilly loved more than words could ever describe. She peeled her now-soaked shirt off as Lilly knelt down and went to work on her sweatpants and panties, laughing all the way.

Long after the hot water had run out and slightly after everyone else had gone to bed, Miley and Lilly lay in their bed, arms still wrapped around each other protectively as they both gazed at the ceilings with blissful smiles on their faces.

"As much as I hate when we fight, we do really good at the making up part, don't we?" asked Miley as she ran her fingers through Lilly's blonde hair.

"Mm hmm," Lilly purred against Miley's neck as she reveled in that intoxicating scent of her lover that was unlike anything else she would ever smell. "You did really good with the making up part tonight, going all the way back to the flowers."

"We need to put some water in them, don't we?"

"Probably. I hope the steam doesn't zap them."

"Well, we left the door open. That should keep it from getting too hot on them. Let me go put some more water in the vase." Miley tried to sit up, but she was quickly pulled back down by two strong arms.

"Where do you think you're going?" asked Lilly.

"Um, to put some more water in the flowers?"

"Uh uh. Not tonight, wildcat. Tonight you're all mine, and those flowers can just wait. Even if they are beautiful."

Miley rolled over, looking directly into Lilly's sapphire eyes filled with love. "Everything can wait except for you, Lil," she said as she leaned in and pressed her lips to her wife's in a kiss that spoke the word love more eloquently than any words ever could.

**Author's Afterword:** My apologies for making everyone wait so long for this chapter, but I did try to make it up to you. The story originally wanted to stop after Lilly's phone call to Jen, but I couldn't leave everyone hanging on that note. Instead I went a bit longer so we could end the chapter on more of a happy note rather than some cliffhanger. Next chapter we get to see some reaction to the interview, and it might not be exactly what most of you are thinking. See you then!

-- Jo --


	14. Chapter 14: Breakdowns

**Author's Note:** I tried to get this chapter out relatively quickly, and I think it complied for the most part. Hope everyone didn't get too antsy waiting. Okay, nothing big to talk about this time, believe it or not. I guess we could chat about Miley and Justin breaking up (supposedly), but then I still say that was a smokescreen from the beginning. And I still have my fingers crossed for Miley and Emily's relationship, whether it's just a strong friendship or budding romance. Only time will tell, I suppose, but my best wishes go out to them regardless. Being a teenager is freaking _hard_ these days, much harder than it was when I was growing up. Stay strong, you two, and follow your hearts.

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist or publication mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo P.

Chapter 14: Breakdowns

_Sometimes it falls apart but you can't let it go_

_Sometimes you've got the drugs and you just can't say no_

_Give me power, get me up on the stage_

_I see you howling and I'm ready to play_

_Pretty baby, you know I'm crazy_

_Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah_

_I've got the feeling in my blood and in my bones_

_They've got each other tonight but I'm still all alone_

_When the show is over_

_When the show is over_

--The Donnas,"When the Show Is Over"

As Mikayla walked off the stage, she couldn't help but grin at the cheers still echoing in the concert hall behind her. The last few days had been exciting in ways both good and bad, but she had learned to shake off the bad a long time ago. A few dozen people protesting outside her concerts following her comments on _Nancy Grace_ really wasn't so bad, after all, and tickets sales had gone up over the last twenty-four hours for the rest of her local shows. Dyseni was talking about a national tour now, sometime they had been reluctant to do up to this point, and Mikayla remained immensely proud of herself for finally getting Hannah Montana to lose her cool. The fact that her meltdown occurred on live television was simply icing on the cake.

As she walked into the dimly lit VIP area backstage, Mikayla surveyed the room coolly. _More suits, more suck-ups, more wanna-bes... hello. Cute boys._ She put on her flirtatious smile and slowly walked across the room, nodding and waving at those who congratulated her on a fine concert but not taking the time to actually speak to any of them.

Arriving at her chosen prey of the night, Mikayla slid up behind one of the two young men, leaning against him as she reached for a glass from the table. "Hi," she purred with a sultry smile as he quickly turned around.

"Um, h-hi," he stammered.

_He's cute. Couldn't be more than eighteen or nineteen._ "I'm Mikayla," she said, offering her hand.

"Jerry," the young man said, recovering enough to smile the smile that had made his television show a hit on one of the networks for teenagers. "And, uh, this is my brother Jim."

"I thought it was Jimmy," Mikayla said, turning to look at his brother, who had curly black hair to contrast his brother's straight brown hair. Their clean looks and sly humor had made their show popular with kids from eight to eighteen.

"Ah, I decided to go by Jim. Jimmy makes me sound like a little kid."

Looking him up and down, Mikayla murmured, "No chance of that from where I'm standing." She flashed him a grin as she saw him blush. Obviously he wasn't used to that direct an approach from women. _Lucky me._

"So, you two like the concert tonight?" Mikayla asked as she filled her glass with some sort of punch. Taking a sniff, she didn't detect any alcohol in it. She downed it in one gulp, refilling her glass smoothly.

"Oh yeah, you were awesome!" Jerry said, smiling broadly. "You dance great, too!"

"Oh yeah!" added his brother. "I mean, you had us—I mean, _them,_ eating out of the palm of your hand all night!"

Mikayla took a sip of her drink this time, watching how they hung on, waiting for her to speak. Finally she said, "Now _that_ sounds like an idea," she said, giving them a smile that made both young men start sweating. "Eating out of the palm of my hand, I mean," she said as she turned and stretched across the table to place her glass on the far side of the table—conveniently giving both young men a long look at her bare lower back and rear as her shirt slid up her back. She turned around, catching both of them still staring at her butt. "All night," she finished with a smile. She put her arms around the two of them. "So, you two have any plans for tonight?" she asked, already knowing the answer.

_The happy squeals drew Miley's attention away from the sunset she found herself watching. She looked across the white sand of whatever beach she was on, taking in the crystal clarity of the turquoise water, so different from what she was used to back home in Malibu. As she scanned the sparsely populated beach, she saw a trio of figures running through the waves as they chased each other from sand to surf and then back again._

_Miley smiled as she shifted her sunglasses and began to walk down to the beach. From the amount of breeze she could feel caressing her bare skin, she guessed she was wearing a dangerously daring swimsuit that left little to the imagination. However, she stopped thinking about herself as she drew close enough to her family to get a good look at Lilly._

_Lilly's blonde hair blew in the tropical breeze, dancing to and fro as the nimble young woman continued to avoid the grasping hands that belonged to their two daughters. Miley guessed offhandedly that they were seven and five, or maybe eight and six. It was hard to tell with them spinning and running in attempts to grab their other mother. But it was also hard to focus on them with someone as stunningly beautiful as Lilly on display for Miley to look at._

_Lilly showed no signs of having been pregnant, with her stomach as solid as Miley had ever seen it. Her thighs were a bit stronger and fuller but no less gorgeous as she ran, showing off her amazing legs in the silvery white bikini she had on. Her shoulders glistened in the sparkling spray of the sea, and the laughter evident on her face completed the vision of loveliness Miley was taking in. No sooner had Miley once again given thanks at finding her perfect mate than Lilly spotted her. The blonde took off at a run toward Miley, jumping over their younger daughter and leaving her laughing as she fell backwards trying to grab her mother. Miley saw Brooke stop to help up her younger sister, then Lilly was upon her, hugging Miley tightly before kissing her so intensely that Miley's knees buckled. If she could have thought about anything other than her best friend's tongue and lips, Miley would have been happy that Lilly was holding her up while she regained her footing, but for several seconds she could only clutch firmly to her wife and return the kiss with all the passion and joy she felt for her sweet, sweet Lilly._

_As first one small body, then a second impacted their legs, Miley and Lilly finally disengaged themselves from their kiss. They looked down to see two matching sets of bright blue eyes gazing up at them, smiles on the precious faces of their daughters._

"_Was that a good kiss Mommy gave you, Momma?" asked Brooke, an impish grin on her face. "'Cause your face is really red right now."_

_Miley licked her lips as she tried to formulate a word, making both young girls giggle. "Oh yeah, that was a good kiss, baby girls." She looked at Lilly and couldn't help but grin madly. "Your Mommy is a great kisser."_

"_Mommy says that you're the best kisser in the whole world, Momma," said little Meri, hanging onto Lilly's strong leg with both arms._

"_Oh she does, does she?" asked Miley, lifting an eyebrow in the direction of her best friend._

"_Something like that might have slipped out the other day," admitted Lilly, trying to conceal the playful grin that threatened to break out across her face. "But it's true."_

"_How 'bout our kisses, Momma?" asked Meri. "Are they good?"_

_Miley knelt down and held her arms out for little Meredith, who immediately threw herself into her mother's embrace. "Your kisses are both wonderful, yours and your sister's. But your Mommy's kisses are different than the ones you two give us. Do you know why?"_

_Meredith didn't say anything, but Brooke smiled an impish smile and said, "I know why!"_

"_Why?"_

"_Because you two are married and love each other! That makes Mommy's kisses for you special!"_

_Miley smiled. She felt Lilly's hand rest on her left shoulder, and she reached back and covered her wife's hand with her own right one. "That's right," she said proudly. "When you girls give me kisses, it reminds me of how much we both love you. When your mommy kisses me, I can feel all the love in her heart mixed with all the love for her in my heart, and it was all that love that made the two of you."_

"_That's a lot a' love," said Meri happily as she wrapped her arms around Miley's neck and Lilly's arm at the same time, squeezing as tightly as her little arms could._

"_You said it, angel," said Lilly softly, pulling Brooke into the family hug. "More love than I ever could have wished for in all my life, that's what your momma gives me."_

"_And what you give me back, Lilly Bear," Miley said, turning her head to kiss Lilly's hand. "Then, now and forever."_

Miley woke to the slightly surprising but no less charming sound of Lilly snoring softly in her ear. She tried not to giggle at the tickling sensation where Lilly's lips were brushing strands of her long chestnut hair, managing only limited success.

"Wha's so funny?" mumbled Lilly, tightening her grip around Miley's hips as she pulled herself even more against Miley's butt.

Miley lightly blew her bangs out of her face before she turned slightly and answered, "You were doin' your cute little sleepy snore thing again."

"I do not snore," said Lilly, nibbling tenderly on the very tasty earlobe right in front of her lips.

Miley squirmed as her entire body shivered at the warm, thrilling sensation of Lilly's lips on her ear. That had always made her shiver with delight from the very first night they had made love, and Lilly had definitely gotten _much_ better at doing it over the years. "Well, it still sounds like a snore, just soft and cute. And I like it."

"I liked that dream," said Lilly in a soft whisper. She was always careful to lower her voice when she was this close to Miley's ear, both to protect Miley's tender hearing and to further tantalize her lover.

"Oh honey, I _loved_ that dream," said Miley as she rolled over so she could face Lilly. She kissed Lilly good morning properly, and only after hands had started to slide beneath pajamas did they pull their lips apart. "Our daughters are going to be so beautiful," she said. "They look a lot like you."

"As long as they behave like me too. You tend to get into trouble."

Miley lightly bit Lilly's cute nose, making her best friend laugh involuntarily. "That's what you get for that crack," Miley said with a smile. But as Miley looked into Lilly's bright blue eyes, she saw her wife's face grow serious unexpectedly.

"I need to tell you something, Miles, and I hope you're not mad at me for not telling you last night."

"I promise that I'll try not to be mad, and that I'll eventually forgive you for whatever it is," Miley pledged, her tone of voice light and playful.

Lilly smiled, but Miley could detect a hint of worry in that smile. "Last night, I... asked Jen to start doing something. About Mikayla."

Miley searched her wife's eyes for any signs of anything seriously wrong. She could see—and feel—Lilly's concern about potentially upsetting her, but she didn't feel any signs of serious trouble. Miley thought quickly, and she made a decision. "Okay," she said.

"Okay what?" asked Lilly, slightly confused.

"Okay, whatever it is you asked Jen," clarified Miley. She smiled lovingly at her Lilly as she ran her fingers through Lilly's blonde hair. "If you didn't tell me last night, it was because you're trying to spare me something. That much I can tell. And whatever you asked Jen to do, you'd only have asked her to do it to protect you, me, or our family."

Lilly felt her concern start to fade somewhat. "You're right on so far," she said, pleasantly surprised.

"So whatever it is, I trust you and your reasons behind it. And so if you're trying to keep me out of whatever this is for my own good, then I understand what you're doing and I'm okay with it."

"But I don't want to keep any secrets from you, Miles. I... I don't think I _can_."

"And you're not this time, Lilly. You've offered to tell me, and you can when you think the time is right. I'm just wanting you to wait a little while to tell me. Maybe after we get back to Malibu."

Lilly's gaze danced all over Miley's face before she finally said with more than a hint of amazement, "As much as we understand each other, Miley, it's just creepy that you figured all that out and reacted the way you did. And it's more than a lot cool, too."

Miley gave Lilly a quick kiss on the lips. "Goes with carrying your little baby inside me, girlfriend," she said proudly. "Along with the mornin' sickness."

"Please! You haven't had morning sickness in two months, Miles, and I'm really happy that you've been so healthy through this pregnancy. Just a few months to go, then we get to meet our baby girl for the first time."

"I bet she looks like you," teased Miley. She thought for a minute before she opened her mouth to say—

"She looks like both of us," Lilly said, rolling to position her body just over Miley's. She smiled as she looked down into Miley's bright blue eyes as she added, "And you know it just as much as I do."

Miley looked up at her best friend's face, hovering just above her own. "I do," she whispered as she reached up and pulled Lilly's head down close enough for their lips to touch, leaving all that those two words meant for them ringing in their minds.

The long ringing of the doorbell abruptly woke Mikayla from her sleep. No bad dreams that she could remember from last night, but the way the sheets were wet around her implied that they had still visited her. _Oh well. I'll take not having to remember them, I guess. Must have been too exhausted to focus on the nightmares._ She smiled as she stretched out lazily in the bed, only to jump when the loud chimes of her doorbell rang out once again. "Damn it! Who's in such a pissy mood that they can't have a bit of patience?" she said loudly to herself.

She threw back the covers and grabbed a silk robe from the closet, covering her nude figure with it as she hurried through the house. "Oh, just perfect," she mumbled as she looked out the small window in the door. She unlocked the door and opened it. "Good morning to you, too, Margot," she said with a subdued voice as the older woman stepped inside. "Want something to drink?" Mikayla asked as she turned and walked into the kitchen.

"You're in a good mood this morning," Margot said quizzically as she closed the door behind her.

"Had a good night last night," Mikayla called out over her shoulder as she opened the refrigerator.

"And would that have something to do with those boys you left the concert with?"

Mikayla grinned as she remembered last night's prolific amorous activities. "It might," she said as she poured herself a glass of orange juice. She walked back into the main room, passing by Margot as she went to her large couch and happily sprawled herself across it, being careful to keep her legs tucked beneath her to keep from flashing Margot. _Ugh. Nasty thought. You are most _definitely_ straight, Mikki._

"Don't I get a glass of juice?" asked Margot, her expression neutral.

"I asked; you didn't answer." Mikayla took a sip of her juice to conceal her smile.

"I'd like a glass of juice."

"Pour it your fucking self."

Margot's expression darkened ever so slightly. "I suggest you remember your place here, Mikayla."

"I know my place, Margot. I'm your client, not your servant. I'm the one with the album that's about to go platinum, I'm the one who Dyseni wants to talk national tour with, and I'm the one who just got Little Miss Perfect to lose her cool on live TV day before yesterday." She grinned, not bothering to hide it as she added, "Plus I'm the one who got laid last night. Like, an awful lot."

"They're not still here, are they?" asked Margot, glancing around.

"Hell no. Sent them home a few hours ago, when they were too worn out to go for another round. I think four did it for them."

"Will they stay quiet about things?"

Mikayla nodded. "Oh, I'm pretty sure they will. Especially after some of the things I had them do with me." She leaned her head back and looked up through the skylight at the blue sky. "They were a bit nervous about both of them doing me at once, at first, but I got them over that fast."

"Corrupting two more virginal boys?" asked Margot, her own smile coming out.

"Oh, I wouldn't say they were virginal. They didn't act like it."

"Well, we don't need you getting into trouble for sleeping with underage boys."

Mikayla rolled her eyes, even though Margot couldn't see it. "They were eighteen and nineteen, Margot. I asked them first. God, give me a bit of credit. And yes, I made them use condoms." With a sly grin she added, "Every time."

"Did you make sure that neither of them recorded you screwing them?"

"Yes, yes, fucking _yes!_ What are you, my fucking _Mom_ or something?" Mikayla lifted her head to glare at her manager. "I made them leave their cell phones out here before we went to the bedroom."

Margot didn't flinch from Mikayla's angry stare. "No, what I am is the one who had to hush up your last little scandal before it ever hit the press. Because if it _had_ gotten out, your career would have been totally fucked in this town forever. Then there was the scandal before that, and the scandal before _that_."

Mikayla sighed and looked down into her glass as she swirled her juice, watching the bits of pulp floating to and fro. "I just sort of roll them all together into one long period of shit in my life," she said numbly.

"This isn't some fucking_ joke_, Mikayla! You're lucky to be _alive_, much less have a career again!" Margot stood, her buttons obviously adequately pushed at this point. "And if it weren't for me, you wouldn't have either one, so don't you forget it!" Margot took a few seconds to cool off before she said, "And I seem to recall you didn't want to go after Montana because it was too close to Christmas or some bullshit like that, so you can thank me for even getting the _chance_ to piss her off!"

"You weren't the one who knew what buttons to push, though, were you?" fired back Mikayla. "Pregnant women are easy to get to, once you get their emotions all stirred up. Their emotions control them, not the other way around."

Margot paused. She locked gazes with Mikayla where the brunette sat on her couch and said, "You'd know, wouldn't you?"

For a single second, time seemed to stop inside the Beverly Hills mansion. Then Mikayla sprang from the couch, hurling her heavy tumbler still half-full of orange juice at Margot, narrowly missing the older woman's head. "GODDAMN YOU!!" she screamed as the glass exploded against the pastel blue wall, spraying orange juice and shards of glass all around. Before Margot could do anything more than flinch from the glass shattering behind her, Mikayla was across the room, leaping off the coffee table and punching Margot in the side of her head. The larger woman staggered away from the furious young woman scrambling back to her feet after landing on the floor. "You fucking _bitch!"_ Mikayla screamed as she shoved the chair beside her away, sending it tumbling across the floor. "If you _EVER_ say anything like that again, I'll _KILL_ you, Margot, do you hear me?! _DO YOU FUCKING HEAR ME?!!" _

For the first time that Mikayla could remember, she could see true fear in Margot's eyes. And despite all the anguish and rage now boiling inside her heart, a tiny piece of her felt good at knowing that _she_ had put that fear inside of Margot instead of it being the other way around. "Get your bottom-feeding ass out of my house, Margot," Mikayla said with a soft but furious voice. "And I suggest you give me a day or two to cool off before you try to call. Because right now I really don't care _what_ you've got to threaten me with, and nothing would make me happier than to choke the life out of you right this fucking second for going where you just did."

Margot hesitated only a second before turning and walking out of the house, slamming the door behind her as she did so. When she was gone, Mikayla turned to look at the wall where rivulets of orange juice were still trickling down to the floor, but she wasn't seeing anything that was happening in the present. Tears filled her eyes as she abruptly sat down, falling to the floor as much as deliberately sitting, and she pulled her legs up to her chest as she began to sob uncontrollably.

Back in Tennessee Lilly and Miley were walking from the barn to Ruthie's house after taking a leisurely winter horseback ride. Lilly still refused to learn to ride by herself, instead preferring to scoot up behind her best friend and hold on tightly while they shared the ride together. As they made the walk back to the farmhouse, hands sought out their mates on their own, without either young woman having to consciously reach for the other. As Miley's right hand curled around Lilly's left, the two of them smiled at each other.

"I love spending Christmas here, Miley," said Lilly. "I love the cold weather, and your family, and the trees and mountains, and..." She stopped, prompting Miley to stop despite the intensifying chill in the air. Lilly pulled Miley closer, into a tight embrace but stopping short of kissing her just yet. "And what I love most is just being here with you. Getting to share everything with you. It's like spending time with you here lets me feel like I'm part of your childhood." She leaned her head down as she looked at the ground next to them as she mumbled, "I know that sounds weird, believe me, I know. But part of me wishes that I'd had the chance to be here, so we wouldn't have been apart ever." She looked back up into Miley's eyes, a gray tint in the bright blue courtesy of the late afternoon sun. "Does that sound stalkerish?"

Miley grinned. "A bit," she said, drawing a playful smack on her butt from her wife. "Okay, a lot." A firmer smack, with a grin spreading across Lilly's face to match Miley's own.

"Meanie."

Miley kissed Lilly then, pressing her lips against her wife's slightly dry ones, chapped just a bit from the cold wind blowing during the ride. As they kissed, all sense of discomfort was melted away from both pairs of lips as they reconnected with each other first lovingly, then hungrily. When they finally separated, both young women's eyes were fluttering as they sought to regain their breath.

"Okay, I take back the meanie comment," said Lilly with a smile.

Miley blinked as a stronger gust of wind blew through the valley, rushing over the relatively flat fields between the barn and the farmhouse. "And I don't think you're a stalker," she said.

"Well, good," Lilly replied as she leaned against Miley, slipping her right arm and shoulder beneath Miley's coat and pressing their chests together as she sought to get as close to her wife as she could at the moment. "Let's go inside and curl up under a blanket."

"Sounds good to me, girlfriend," said Miley.

As they turned to resume their walk back to the house, Miley said, "I can understand what you were sayin', about wantin' to be part of my childhood."

"You can?" asked Lilly.

"Yup. And I don't think it's weird or silly." Miley tilted her head to look at Lilly. "You know why?"

"Why?"

"Because I think you were there, in a way. All those times when I'd wonder what life held for me, if I'd ever find true love and happiness, I was thinking about you, Lilly Bear, I just didn't know it yet. And whenever I'd pray to God to help me find someone who really loved me, I was really praying for you that whole time."

At that moment Lilly wished she could crawl into Miley's clothes and hug her entire body. "That's one of the sweetest things I've ever heard, Miley," she said with a tight voice. "I love you so much."

"Love you too, beautiful. Love you too." Miley kissed Lilly on the side of her head while they were walking up the porch steps.

As they went inside, Ruthie was in the kitchen, working on something for dinner.

"Are you supposed to be on your feet this much, Mamaw?" asked Lilly, concern in her voice.

"Don't see the doctor here tellin' me otherwise," Ruthie replied without turning around, focused on what looked like cutting small pieces of meat for what smelled like a stew.

"Well, we're gonna curl up on the couch and watch TV for a while," said Miley. "Unless you need us to help you with cookin' dinner." As Ruthie stopped cutting, Miley knew that her choice of words had indeed had its intended effect.

"Miley May Stewart Truscott, the day I _need_ someone to help me cook in my own kitchen is the day you might as well just take me out in that there field in front of this house and shoot me!" Ruthie continued to give Miley a serious look as Miley held her hands out in front of her, trying to ward off any further comments of that sort from her grandmother.

"Alright, Mamaw, just makin' sure!" Miley said, feeling Lilly laugh where she had buried her head against her wife's side. "Then we're gonna put on some loungin' around clothes."

As the two of them walked into the hallway, Ruthie called out, "And don't think you pulled one over on your old Mamaw. I just don't think it'd be a good idea for a young lady in the family way to be on her feet too long, especially after a horseback ride."

"Busted," whispered Lilly with a grin.

"Thanks, Mamaw," Miley called out down the hall, a guilty grin on her face. "Love you."

"Love you two, too," came floating down the hall as they went into their bedroom here.

Roughly an hour later saw Miley and Lilly stretched out on one of Ruthie's long couches in front of the television, Miley between Lilly's legs as she laid back against her wife. They had covered themselves with a large, light blanket which had proven to be both comfortably warm and adequate to conceal careful little touches and caresses that would have been a bit much for anyone else to see. Ruthie and Robbie Ray had gone into town to get some more ingredients for the stew, but they would be back before long, and getting caught fooling around wasn't on either Miley's or Lilly's agenda.

All in all, it had been a wonderfully relaxing day, soothing much of the last two days' anxiety; even the news reports showing clips of the interview two days ago didn't spoil the mood of the young couple. Thankfully, CNN had run the show with a slight delay, so Miley's slip of profanity had been bleeped before it could be heard, giving her immense relief.

As the front door opened, Miley and Lilly turned to see their nieces Peyton and Melody walking in. "Hey girls," said Lilly, looking back to the television after a cursory glance. "Have fun at the mall with your friends today?"

"Mostly," said Peyton with a sour voice. "Until we got in a fight."

"What?" asked Miley as both she and Lilly whirled their heads to reassess the two teenagers. Peyton and Melody walked over, and now the tears and rips in Peyton's personally autographed Hannah Montana concert shirt were obvious, as were their red knuckles and the darkening bruise on the side of Melody's face. "What happened to you two?" shouted Miley as she stood.

Lilly just barely got her hand out from under Miley's shirt as her wife jumped to her feet, but she manage to extricate herself before Miley pulled her off the couch. "Mel, your face!" she cried out.

"It stings," said Melody with a slight whimper in her voice, but despite the tears in her eyes, the newly thirteen-year-old refused to cry. "But I got her back good," she added proudly. "Real good."

"Mel knocked her out," Peyton said, slapping Melody on the back only to see her sister yelp and cringe. "Oh shoot! I'm sorry, Mel!"

"Okay, in our bathroom, now!" said Miley, looking around and hoping that Ruthie and her father didn't get back for a little while longer. The four of them hustled down the hall and into the large guest bedroom. "Let me look at your back, Mel," Miley said, helping her younger niece lift up her shirt. "Mel!"

Large bruises were scattered across the young girl's back, making all three observers wince in sympathy. "Who the hell did this to you?" asked Lilly angrily. "Because I'm gonna stomp them into the ground!"

"A bunch of bitches we go to school with," answered Melody, "and we already took care of the last part."

"We had just gone outside after walkin' the mall a few times, and we were walkin' through the parkin' lot when this one whore named June Little and her bitchy friends got in front of us," said Peyton from the bathroom, where she was running cold water on a washcloth.

"Who's 'us'?" asked Miley.

"Us, our friend Freddie and his girlfriend Hildy," said Melody. "Hildy's mom had taken us to the movies and was pullin' into the parkin' lot right as this happened. Anyway, they saw Pey's Hannah Montana shirt, and June said something really nasty about you, Aunt Miley. Well, about Hannah, but you know what I mean."

"What did she say?" said Lilly, and silently Miley found herself hoping that Melody didn't give any details, because Lilly was already at the point of exploding.

"You really don't want to hear it, Aunt Lilly. Neither of you do." Melody took the cold rag Peyton handed her and began gingerly washing her face with it, removing the residue of tears and grit. "Anyway, we got pissed at her big mouth. _Then_ she called me a dyke whore."

"That was when I shoved her skanky ass away from my little sister," said Peyton. "And then she puffed her flat chest up and had the guts to say that being gay was immoral and that I must be a lezzie lover because I liked Hannah Montana and had a lesbian sister. So I knocked her fucking head off."

"Peyton, watch your language!" hissed Miley.

"Sorry. And that's when all of them jumped the two of us."

"How many of them were there?" asked Lilly, starting to gently apply the other side of the washcloth to the scrapes and bruises on Melody's back. "Sorry, sweetie," she said as Mel flinched slightly.

"It's okay," whispered Melody. "I think there were four or five, I'm really not sure."

"There were five left standin' after June went down like a whore on dollar day," Peyton said. "She tried to get up, but Mel jumped on top of her and beat the shit out of her."

"I got all those bruises on my back from where some of 'em kept trying to get me off of her," Melody said.

Peyton gently gave her little sister a hug, fighting back tears herself. "I'm sorry I couldn't keep them all off of you, Mel. I really, really am."

"I know, Pey," Melody said. "I heard you fightin' the rest of 'em the whole time."

"Anyway, I saw Hildy's mom pull up, so I kicked the last two bitches swingin' away at Mel in the backs of their knees and pulled her off a' June so we could get in the van and get the heck out of there." Peyton looked over Melody's shoulder at her aunts. "I'm sorry for throwin' the first punch, but I'm not sorry for defendin' my sister and my aunt," she said defiantly. "And I won't take people talkin' shit about either Hannah or Lola, 'cause those are my aunts whether anybody knows it or not!"

"They got it from that Mikayla, on that TV show two days ago," Melody said. "June's usin' the word 'immoral' sounded just like that tramp right before you put her in her place, Aunt Miley. And like you said, if they want a fight, they've got one, and we sure as heck gave it to 'em!"

Miley felt her blood suddenly turn to ice as she realized what her niece was unknowingly implying. "Girls, that's not what I meant when I said that..."

"No, Aunt Miley, that _is_ what you meant, and all of your fans are gonna stand up for you! We're not gonna let somebody who's probably doin' lots worse stuff than either of you talk trash about either of you any more!" said Peyton. "That bitch Mikayla don't know what hornets' nest she's kicked, but I think she's gonna be findin' out real soon."

Lilly gave Miley a serious look behind their nieces' backs, then she said, "We're going to get some ice packs for you two. Stay right here." She left the room, closing the door behind Miley quietly.

Miley didn't say anything as she felt guilt collapse upon her. Each step down the hallway felt like she was walking deeper into a nightmare, only this nightmare was one of her own doing. By the time she reached the kitchen, still following Lilly, Miley was crying. She yanked a chair out from the kitchen table and fell down onto it, burying her face in her hands as she sobbed uncontrollably.

Gentle hands rested themselves on the sides of her head, but Miley didn't think she deserved comfort at that moment. She tried to push Lilly's hands away, only to receive a crisp smack on her left hand for her efforts.

"Don't you push me away, Miley," said Lilly, her voice stern, caring and beautiful all at once. She pulled out a chair beside Miley and wrapped her arms around her best friend, pulling her against her chest as she held Miley, whispering assurances of her love and that things would be okay as she tried to soothe her devastated wife.

"I did that to them, Lilly," Miley said amidst her sobs. "I told Mikayla that she was getting a fight, and Peyton and Melody took it literally! They got hurt because of me, because of what I said!"

"Miley," said Lilly calmly, "you didn't make those other girls say those ugly things. They caused the fight, not you."

Miley lifted her head, and her red eyes made Lilly's heart ache. "What if other girls take what I said that way? What if there are more fights between Hannah's fans and Mikayla's fans?"

Lilly felt her own eyes water, but she struggled to keep it together. Right now Miley needed her to be strong, to tell her that this wasn't her fault and not to try and take all this guilt upon herself. "Miley, I don't think that people are going to take what you said that way," she finally said, running her fingers through Miley's long brown hair. "But even in the worst case, if they did, Mikayla's the one who's been saying all this bad stuff about us. She's the one who's been building all this hate. All you did was tell her that you weren't going to stand by and take it anymore."

"It's my fault," Miley whispered again, her tears showing no sign of stopping.

Lilly swallowed. She had seen this downward spiral of guilt only rarely in her best friend, but it always threatened to consume her when it did. This had to stop now. "Miley?" Lilly asked, softly. When she got no response she tried again, with a firmer voice. "_Miley._"

Miley's body stopped shaking, and Lilly could hear her best friend suck in a shaky breath.

"Listen to me, Miley," she said, trying to project as much confidence as she could. "Are you listening to me?" Miley weakly nodded her head, emboldening Lilly ever so slightly. "Good. You know I love you, right?" Another nod. "And you trust me when I say something, right?"

"Yes," came a weak voice from near Lilly's chest, and it sent a shiver down Lilly's spine. It was so despondent that it didn't even resemble her girlfriend's strong voice.

"Okay, good," Lilly said. "Now you need to listen to me and believe what I'm about to tell you, Miley. Because I'm not going to lie to you." She leaned back slightly and reached down, lifting Miley's head up with both hands. It was harder than she had expected, because Miley initially resisted, but she quickly let Lilly do what she wanted. Lilly looked at her distraught wife, and impulsively she leaned forward and kissed Miley. She tried to convey all the love and support she could through that kiss, and soon Miley began to kiss back. Lilly could feel deep inside her heart how Miley was slowly recovering her confidence through that intimate connection between them, and part of her mind registered that Miley had stopped crying.

When they finally parted lips with a soft sigh on Miley's part, Lilly smiled. "Whatever is going on, whatever you said on that damn interview, you did _NOT_ tell your fans to pick fights with Mikayla's fans, Miley. You did absolutely nothing of the sort, and I'm not going to let you try and convince yourself that you did. You didn't. If some people are taking your words that way, then we can put a stop to that. _YOU_ can put a stop to that." Lilly searched her best friend's eyes, brilliant pools of blue amid the redness surrounding them. "You said what you did to try and stop the hateful words and actions, Miley, not create more. Don't forget that."

Miley stared back into Lilly's own blue eyes for long seconds. She reached up and touched Lilly's lips with her right index finger, running it lightly across her lover's lips until she had covered both of them in their entirety. "You are so good to me," she finally said. "Even when I don't feel like I deserve it."

"But you do deserve it, Miley, you—"

Miley shushed Lilly with that same finger, covering both lips at once. "I know," she said, and now a faint smile stole across her own lips. "I know I deserve it because I have you, and you're the most special thing in this whole world to me. Thank you for talking some sense into me." She threw her arms around Lilly's neck and hugged her best friend fiercely.

"It's a hard job," Lilly said.

"What is?"

"Talking some sense into you."

Miley smiled more comfortably now. "I can only imagine," she said softly. "I bet it's a thankless job, too."

"Actually," said Lilly, "there are some benefits to it."

"Oh, really?"

Lilly nodded. "Having someone help keep the house clean rocks."

Miley tried not to snicker at Lilly's rather unexpected comment. "Is that all?"

"Well, the sex darn near blows my mind, too!" Lilly chirped happily.

The sound of a crash in the hall drew both young women's attention. "Were you two listenin' to us?" called out Miley over her shoulder.

After a pause, two rather guilty voices said in unison, "Yes," making Miley and Lilly both laugh.

"Well, might as well come on in here, then, since you apparently heard it all already," said Miley with a sigh. As their nieces took seats at the kitchen table, Miley said, "Sorry you had to hear me have a moment there."

"We tried to come in here so you wouldn't hear us," said Lilly. She looked up and fixed both Peyton and Melody with a stern glare as she added, "I think you owe your Aunt Miley an apology for eavesdropping, don't you?"

Peyton and Melody looked at each other guiltily. "We're sorry, Aunt Miley," said Peyton, with Melody joining in immediately with, "Really sorry!"

"It's okay," said Miley. "So what are you gonna do about your favorite Hannah Montana autographed t-shirt gettin' all tore up?"

Peyton grinned. "Well, I was sorta hopin' I might be able to get it replaced, maybe?" she asked carefully.

"Only if you don't get in any more fights over Hannah," said Miley, pointing a finger first at Peyton, then at Melody. "Defending your sister is cool, but rollin' in the dirt with Mikayla fans ain't, you got me?"

"We got you," sighed Peyton.

"Now," said Miley with a teasing grin, "what exactly are you gonna tell Mamaw when she gets inside? 'Cause I see her and Daddy pullin' in the driveway right now."

"Turtle turds," said Melody, putting her head down on the table atop her folded arms. "I'm _so_ grounded."

**Author's Afterword:** Hope everyone enjoyed this chapter! It was a bit more emotional than most others, but sometimes those are the better chapters. This chapter also gave some hints into what's going on in Mikayla's mind, for those of you brave enough to go there. For now let's just say that there are lots of things she'd like to keep in the past, but I promise you'll get a clearer picture as the story continues. See you in the next chapter!

-- Jo --


	15. Chapter 15: Inside the Box

**Author's Note:** Ooooh, I love to see everyone starting to talk about Mikayla's mysterious past! There have been some very good theories put forward, but obviously I can't verify or deny any of them at this point without spoiling the surprise that will come as you find out bits and pieces along the way. I will say that Chapter 14 probably had more clues about that past than any other single chapter, ranging from the very obvious to the extremely subtle. After reading it, I think going back and re-reading previous chapters might give new insight into some phrases and behaviors that might have not be notable at the time they were first read.

Now, I realize that this chapter took forever to post, but it's sort of a long one. I was trying to get it proofread and posted last night, but when I started to fall asleep while reading it I figured it would be best to finish proofing it today. And for those of you unfamiliar with the card game Rook, it's a card game played with two teams of two players each that shares similarities with both Hearts and Spades but ups the challenge with different cards and rules. It tends to become a vicious game among people in the South who take it seriously (sometimes too seriously). I've seen friends and even family members refuse to talk to each other for weeks after a particularly bitter game of Rook. That said, it's time to see what Christmas brings in this chapter!

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist or publication mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo P.

Chapter 15: Inside the Box

_You can change your hair and you can change your clothes_

_You can change your mind, that's just the way it goes_

_You can say goodbye and you can say hello_

_But you'll always find your way back home_

_You can change your style, you can change your jeans_

_You can learn to fly and you can chase your dreams_

_You can laugh and cry but everybody knows_

_You'll always find your way back home_

--Hannah Montana,"You'll Always Find Your Way Back Home"

Christmas Eve came upon the small community of Misty Hollow before anyone realized it. In the warm home of Ruthie Stewart, Miley and Lilly were watching the replay of Hannah Montana's press conference from the previous day. They had gone back to Knoxville to record the brief statement, with Miley not taking any questions from the reporters who had somehow gotten enough notice to gather at the local NBC affiliate.

"_After appearin' on CNN's _Nancy Grace_ a few days ago, I've become aware of some incidents occurrin' where fights have broken out between some of mine and Lola's fans and Mikayla's fans. I want all my fans and those who have supported me over the years to hear this loud and clear: I do not want any violence, hate, or anger out there on my behalf. Even if you disagree with the messages of intolerance and egotism being displayed by Mikayla—because that's what they are—please conduct yourselves with class and restraint. I don't want anybody fighting or getting hurt because of things being said about my wife or about me. We're both big girls, and we can ignore that kind of malarkey as well as anyone._

_Would I like to apologize for losin' my temper the other night during that interview? Yeah, I would. I let slip some bad language that I'm really glad didn't make it out on the air, and I owe CNN a big one for catchin' that. But I never have and never will apologize for standin' up for my wife and my family, and I can fight back without droppin' myself to the level that Mikayla has carved out._

"_To my fans, remember that the message I want you to take home is that love is the most important force in this whole world. It can heal and inspire like nothin' else, and love lets us forgive others as well as ourselves. I don't want any of you to push love aside to embrace hate or anger. It's okay to stand up for yourselves and for what you believe in, but don't act out of anger or retaliation. Like my Papaw always used to say, 'An eye for an eye just leaves everybody blind'."_

"I think you hit the perfect tone," said Lilly, snuggled up beside her wife and resting her head on Miley's shoulder as they watched a replay of the brief press conference. "I mean, you clearly told all your fans to not be starting trouble with any of Mikayla's fans, but you also let them know that it was okay to stand up for themselves just like you were standing up for us."

Thankfully, there had only been a few isolated incidents of fights breaking out between groups of Hannah fans and Mikayla fans reported prior to Hannah's statement. Tensions between the two camps remained strong, however, and there was little sign of those tensions mitigating soon.

Lilly and Miley returned their attention to the television for the ending of Hannah's statement.

"_This holiday season should be a time of happiness and celebration, not for fighting and name-calling. In my family, we celebrate Christmas in two days, but whatever holiday you recognize, please put forth extra effort to be kind, be patient, and be forgiving this holiday season. Life is too short to waste it on anger and hate. Instead, spend time with your loved ones and give thanks for all the blessings you've been given in this life. Merry Christmas and happy holidays!"_

"Oh yeah," said Lilly, giving Miley a quick kiss on her cheek. "Perfect job. I'm proud of you."

"I'm sure somebody'll find something wrong with it," Miley said, still a bit depressed about losing her composure on the interview.

"Oh, hush," chided Lilly. "Who cares what anybody but your fans, friends and family think about it? Let 'em be goobers if they want to. We can just ignore them."

Miley looked curiously at her wife and ran her fingers through Lilly's recently straightened and shiny blonde hair.

"What?" asked Lilly, focused on Miley's expression.

"Well, I'd swear that this was blonde hair, but it sounds like there's a brain under them roots!" Lilly playfully pushed Miley's head back, getting a deep laugh from Miley that sent shivers up and then down her back.

"You have the sexiest laugh," Lilly said, her voice entirely serious as she looked into Miley's sparkling blue eyes. "It's so honest."

"Thank you," said Miley politely as she stared more into Lilly's own lovely eyes. "But what I'd honestly like to do right now is kick Mikayla's ass to the curb."

"I know you would, Miles, and that's why I'm even more proud of you for showing as much class as you did in your statement."

Miley leaned back on the couch, with Lilly following her down. "Well, any feud between me and her needs to stay between us. Nobody else, especially my fans, needs to get sucked down into this. And I don't want anybody else getting hurt like Mel did."

Lilly rested with her head on Miley's chest for a minute or two, listening to her best friend's heartbeat. "Does it bother you that they got into trouble for fighting to defend you?" she finally asked.

Miley thought before she answered, "Yeah, it does. I mean, Peyton was really just tryin' to defend her sister!"

"But their parents both said that they were only grounding them for a week because they had a good reason for getting in the fight, Miley. They didn't punish them as hard as they would have otherwise. And there have to be _some_ consequences for getting into fights, right?"

"Most of the time, yeah," Miley carefully replied. "But sometimes fighting for something or someone you love is the right thing to do, and how can you punish someone for doin' the right thing?"

Lilly opened her mouth to reply, then she caught herself. She smiled, then she said, "You know, it sounds sort of like we're talking about our daughter instead of our nieces, doesn't it?"

"Yeah," Miley said, nodding. "Hope you realize that I'm right by the time she's old enough to be swingin' punches."

"Hey, are we getting in the big hot tub tonight like we had talked about?" Lilly suddenly asked, neatly changing the subject.

When Ruthie's doctor had first mentioned that warm water therapy might help with her rehabilitation following the surgery to repair her leg several months ago, Miley had decided to take the opportunity to do something nice for her grandmother. She and Lilly had carefully researched different brands and model of hot tubs, finally deciding to purchase two separate hot tubs, one a swim spa allowing endless swimming inside a twenty-foot long heated spa with wave jets, the other a luxurious state-of-the-art spa that looked like it could comfortably fit twelve or fourteen people.

The two of them had spent two weeks consulting with one of the country's premier spa companies, going so far as to fly them out to Tennessee twice, first to inspect the proposed area and then to really build the agreed-upon facility behind Ruthie's house. In addition to the swim spa and hot tub, Miley and Lilly had also paid for a small outbuilding, designed to match the farmhouse, with two bathrooms and changing rooms to service the hot tubs. The tubs themselves had canopies built over them with flexible walls that could be rolled up and tied out of the way when the weather was nice or pulled down to hold in the heat when the weather turned cold.

The tubs were being cleaned when the girls made it back to Misty Hollow a few days ago, and tonight would be the first night since they had returned that the two hot tubs would be filled and operational. To celebrate, they had asked Peyton and Melody, Jackson and Kaela, Luanne and Ron and their friends Amy Hearon and Dee Zaharias to join them. Since the Stewarts had always celebrated Christmas on Christmas morning, the night before had always been kept free to do whatever anyone felt like, and a hot tub party sounded like oodles of fun to both Miley and Lilly.

In response to Lilly's question, Miley nuzzled her wife's ear and whispered, "You bet your sweet butt that we're gettin' in that hot tub. I'm wantin' to see you in that new half-off pink bikini you got the other day."

Lilly looked confused. "Miles, it wasn't on sale, sweetie."

Miley shook her head. "Didn't say it was. I said it was half-off. As in, it's only got about half the fabric a bikini's supposed to have." Miley had been shocked when Lilly had held the tiny bikini up for her to see last month. It was much more daring than usual for Lilly; granted, her wife had the athletic body to pull off such a revealing outfit, but it had still given Miley quite a start to consider how Lilly would look in that particular bathing suit.

Lilly grinned. "Been saving it for the hot tub here, honey. The waves'd knock that top right off of me if I tried to surf in it. And probably the bottoms too."

"I might just knock the top and bottoms off of you myself," Miley mumbled under her breath.

"What was that, Miles?"

Miley smiled pleasantly. "Oh, just thinkin' to myself."

The look that Lilly gave her best friend indicated that she didn't buy that line for a second, but she wisely let it go. After all, she had a pretty good idea of Miley's train of thought at the moment, because she could feel her own body start to heat up deep inside her pelvis in tune with Miley's growing arousal. "Won't be long until tonight, lover girl," Lilly whispered back to Miley, brushing her lips over Miley's before getting up and stretching slowly.

"Shoot!" said Miley suddenly, sitting up and grabbing her cell phone off the table beside them. "Lunch with Mamaw and Daddy!"

Lilly bolted forward, running through the house and into their guest room. She grabbed the outfit that Miley had already picked out for the lunch they had planned with Ruthie and Robbie Ray earlier in the week. She tossed the dress to Miley as she came through the door, her shirt already off. "I am _so_ sorry, Miley! I totally forgot about it!" Lilly said as she hurriedly stripped out of her own lounging around clothes.

"Not like I remembered any better'n you did, hon," Miley replied as she tugged her top down over her bra. "But we can still make it if we hurry."

"Better getting there late than getting there dead," Lilly said, casting a wary eye at Miley.

Miley stopped, still holding her shorts in her hands. "Obviously, you've never been late to one of my Mamaw's get-togethers. 'Cause let me tell you, for Mamaw us gettin' there late and us gettin' there dead ain't exactly mutually exclusive."

Lilly went back to work pulling on clothes, managing to squeeze out a bit more speed than before.

Eleven minutes Miley and Lilly had made it to the restaurant with exactly one minute to spare, but it took Miley driving and Lilly yelling at her to slow down most of the way to achieve that. By the time they got out of the car, both girls were a bit rattled.

"Can I stop looking for cops now?" Lilly asked softly, looking over her shoulder once again.

Miley forced herself to not look at her wife just yet. "You can stop once we're inside," she said, taking Lilly's hand as they hurried to the front door of Sullivan's Restaurant.

Located in a town close to Misty Hollow, the restaurant had been built in what was originally an old department store along the city's original Broadway. The years had been unkind to most of the buildings along this part of Broadway, but the restaurant had renovated this building entirely, keeping the unusual loft layout of the old store and even leaving the original brick walls uncovered. People both young and old enjoyed the restaurant for being a living link to the past while still offering the excellent food of an upscale restaurant.

By the time the meal was over, Lilly was quite content. Her belly was full, she had enjoyed seeing Ruthie back to her old self, and it was nice to see not only Robbie Ray but also Luanne's father Bobby Ray and her stepmother Noel. Ruthie had also told them about a special Christmas-themed church service the night after Christmas, consisting only of singing. The more Lilly pondered that, the more she wondered if Miley would sing if they went. For that matter, _should_ Miley sing if they went? Would someone be able to recognize her voice as Hannah Montana's, even singing totally different songs?

The fact that the answer to that question didn't immediately come to mind troubled Lilly. Well, if she wasn't sure about the risk, then common sense said to not take the chance.

"What's on your mind, hon?" asked Miley as they were walking back to their Blazer.

"Hm?" Lilly said, looking up. "Oh, just thinking about that singing coming up at the church."

"Ah." After a pause, Miley said, "Thinkin' about us goin'?"

"Sort of. I was really thinking about if it would be smart for you to sing a song or two up there."

Miley frowned at that thought. "I'm not sure, Lil. Even singin' Christmas songs, there's a chance that someone could get suspicious about how much my voice sounds like Hannah's."

"Yeah, I know," said Lilly, leaning against Miley as they walked. "Your voice is one of a kind. I think that it'd be too big a risk for you to sing at a church special."

"Doesn't mean we can't go for a bit."

Lilly looked back up and over at her wife. "Really? You wouldn't mind going? Because, you know, I'd like to get to see some of the people at the church again. Some of them have been really nice to us."

Miley hugged her best friend closer. "I'd like to see some of 'em too, girlfriend. I think we could stop by for a few minutes."

"That works," said Lilly happily. "Thank you, Miles. For letting me be a part of your world, I mean."

"Aw, Lilly," said Miley, "you _are_ my world. Everything else is lucky to get the chance to be around _you_."

"You're an awesome wife, Miley Truscott."

"Because I learned from the best, Lilly Truscott. And you teach me more about being a good wife every day."

Lilly put both arms around Miley and held her tightly as they continued their walk, slowly but happily. "Love you, Miles," she said, her voice slightly muffled by Miley's thick coat.

"Love you too, baby," Miley answered with a kiss to Lilly's toboggan-covered head.

After a trip to Knoxville for some shopping, the two young women were on their way back to Ruthie's house. They had split up long enough to do some shopping for each other, and the bags had been sorted carefully. Lilly's purchases were in the backseat, where Miley's couldn't see them since she was driving, while Miley's purchases were in the cargo space in the back of the Blazer, where Lilly couldn't turn around and peek at them.

As they neared Ruthie's house, they saw three cars parked at the house. They recognized one as Ruthie's, but the other two were new to them.

"Wonder who that is?" said Miley as she looked at the cars. "I mean, it's not really time for people to start gettin' here, is it?"

Lilly didn't take her eyes off the road. "Beats me."

"You're a lot of help."

"I try," Lilly said with a smile as she turned into the long driveway. As they pulled up to the house, they saw the front door swing open as a tall woman with long red hair burst out of the house, racing across the porch and down the steps as she ran to the cars.

Lilly quickly put the car into Park and turned off the engine, but Miley had already beaten her out of the car. "KAELA!" Miley squealed as she met her sister-in-law with a warm hug. "Oof, don't squish the baby!" she said quickly.

Kaela released Miley just in time for Lilly to grab her. "We were wondering when you were all coming in! How are Jackson and the kids?" she asked hurriedly.

"They're great," said Kaela as she examined Miley's belly. "Aw, I can't believe you're really pregnant!" she said, grinning from ear to ear. "I know you two are just beside yourselves; you've wanted to have kids with each other for so long, and now it's finally coming true!"

Lilly smiled as she put her arm around Miley. "It's more amazing every day, Kae, it really is. I mean, getting to share this with Miley, I just..." Lilly felt a tear form in her left eye. "It's hard to put it into words, sometimes. How much I love this."

Miley turned and wrapped her arms around Lilly, holding her tightly as she buried her face against Lilly's neck. "You don't have to put it into words, Lilly," she said softly, letting Lilly cry a few tears before she got herself under control. The emotions were coming with more intensity now, and at the oddest times for both of them. Miley's were still a bit more unpredictable than Lilly's, but sometimes Lilly would just be overcome with unexpected emotions. Miley knew her hormones were affecting Lilly through the connection they shared, and she just tried to be Lilly's support when a tidal wave of feelings came out of nowhere and crashed upon her. By now Miley had gotten used to it—mostly—but Lilly still didn't know exactly how to handle the surge of emotion just yet. Miley looked up to see Kaela watching them with an expression that seemed to combine amusement with nostalgia.

"Jeez, I've missed you two," Kaela said. "Now come inside, it's cold out here. Somebody said something about a hot tub, I think?"

"Oh yeah!" said Lilly, wiping her eyes with her left hand. "Hot tub party is ready to go!"

A little over an hour later, everything was set for the party. Robbie Ray and Ruthie had gone for a drive to look at the Christmas lights, and Miley had extracted a promise from her father that they'd be gone for at least three hours. In return, she and Lilly had promised to not let anyone tear up the house. In fact, they had already moved a cooler with different drinks out on the back porch, and a table with assorted snack foods had been set up beneath the covered part of the back porch. It was just a short distance between refreshments and the warm jacuzzi, but in the winter cold it was an exhilarating experience.

Miley and Lilly changed into their swimsuits inside the house, Miley going for a light blue bikini with a teak ring holding the front together. The odd wooden ring drew attention to her chest, and Miley was happy with it being that way tonight. Lilly had put on the barely-there bikini, its color somewhere between pink and red, and they both had thick robes on as they went out the back door. They saw that Jackson and Kaela were already in the hot tub, talking with Luanne and Ron.

"Hey, everybody!" called out Miley, waving as her brother, sister-in-law, brother-in-law and secret sister returned her greeting.

Lilly started to say something, then she stopped and pointed quickly. "I think we have a few more, Miles," she said with a smile.

Walking around the corner of the house were Peyton, Melody, Amy, Dee, and a boy and girl that Miley and Lilly didn't recognize. "Ya'll go change in the bathhouse over there," Miley said, raising her voice to be heard over the bubbling jets.

As the younger quartet went to the bathhouse, Amy and Dee continued walking to the back porch. "We got our suits on under our clothes," Amy said cheerily. "No point in wastin' time!"

Miley took off her robe, revealing her slightly distended abdomen to cheers and squeals from Kaela and Amy. "I'm not stayin' in too long," she said. "Don't want this little girl to get too hot."

"I so hate you," said Kaela, deadpan. "My stomach was already huge when I was four months pregnant with Jefferson."

Miley stopped just before getting into the jacuzzi. "That's a bunch a' bull!" she said. "Kaela, you're dang near six and a half feet tall or somethin' like that, and there wasn't a snowball's chance in hell of your stomach bein' anywhere near as big as mine is at nineteen weeks!"

"Actually, it was pretty big for her height," Jackson added. "Even the doctor said—" His words were cut short by his face contorting in pain, his mouth open in a silent cry.

"I don't think they want to hear what my doctor said, _sweetheart_," said Kaela, a thin smile on her face as she leaned against her husband, her left hand and arm submerged beneath the foaming surface of the warm water. She slowly moved back to her previous position beside Jackson, and he finally gasped for breath as her left hand came above the surface of the water, resting on the wall of the jacuzzi beside her.

Miley couldn't help but laugh at her brother's obvious discomfort. In fact, it just felt right to have the chance to joke around with him and Kaela again. It had been too long since they had seen each other, close to six months now, and rarely Miley found herself missing the fun and even the aggravation that went along with living her brother—sometimes. But things change, and with time siblings in a house give way to spouses and children for most people, as the case had been with Miley and Jackson as well as with Lilly and Ron.

Lilly came back over to the hot tub. "Here you go, Miles," she said, holding out a cup of hot tea and a plate of potato chips. "Figured you'd want something to snack on while we relaxed."

"Oh, you are so good to me, darlin'," gushed Miley as she took the plate and cup of steaming tea, giving Lilly a lingering kiss on the lips in repayment. "Love you," she said as she stuffed a chip in her mouth. She noticed that Dee had come back over with Lilly; the soft-spoken girl with raven black hair carried two cups of hot tea over to where Amy had already climbed into the jacuzzi, handing her friend one as she set her own on the hot tub's wall beside Amy. Dee's gaze lingered on Amy just a second longer than would be expected before Amy turned to thank her, blowing a playful kiss in a way that might have been an opening flirt.

_Well, that's interesting,_ thought Miley. She looked away before either Amy or Dee caught her looking at them, arranging her plate and cup where there would be enough room between them and Lilly's sure-to-follow plate and cup for them to lean their heads back without knocking anything off the jacuzzi—or into it.

When Peyton and Melody came back out, they introduced their guests to everyone. Monica was one of Melody's friends, almost exactly the same height as Melody but with ash brown hair and hazel eyes to contrast Melody's dark hair and green eyes. Peyton's guest was named Walt; they had become friends over the last year at school, and tonight was apparently—

"_Your first date?!"_ shouted Miley with a squeal. "Your first date, and you got into a bikini for him?" She shifted to look at Walt. "Do you know how lucky you are, buster? I mean, a girl 'round here doesn't hop into a bikini for just anybody."

Peyton blushed slightly, but she recovered enough to say, "Aunt Miley, it's okay, really. We had talked about going out and doin' stuff right after school started, but we just never found the time to do anything."

"_That's_ your Aunt Miley?" Walt said to Peyton, surprise evident on his face.

Peyton nodded. "Yeah, and that's my Aunt Lilly," she added, pointing to Lilly, who helpfully waved at the now quite self-conscious young man.

"I take it Peyton's talked about us before?" Lilly asked, more than slightly amused.

The young man nodded vigorously. "Yes ma'am," he said politely. "She said you two were drop-dead gorgeous, and I see that she wasn't exaggeratin'!"

Lilly turned to Miley and said, "I like him, I think."

Miley grinned at her wife. "He's off to a good start, that's for sure," she replied as she rested her head on Lilly's shoulder. Lilly responded by circling her arm around Miley's waist, pulling her wife close to her.

Melody's friend Monica turned to look at her. She leaned in and said just loud enough to be heard over the rushing jets, "I just now realized that this seems to be a couples thing. Is that right?"

Melody felt her heart skip several beats. She looked into her friend's eyes and summoned up the willpower to tell her the truth despite the gnawing fear of the possible reactions. "Yeah," she said. "Is... Is that okay with you?"

The other girl looked closely into Melody's eyes for several long seconds before Melody felt fingers tentatively, fumblingly grasp her hand beneath the steamy water. "I've known you since third grade, Mel," Monica said, leading Melody slightly away from the others now talking loudly over the noise of the hot tub. "I was one of the first people you told when you realized you were gay."

"And you were always okay with that," replied Melody. "With me."

Monica smiled, and Melody felt her heart leap at that sign. "And I'm always gonna be okay with you, Mel. Just like I'm okay with this bein' our first date." Beneath the cover of warm, bubbling water, two more hands found each other and grasped tightly, completing the circuit of contact between the two girls. "I'd been waitin' for you to ask me out for a while, you know."

"What?" said Melody, nearly yelling in her surprise. "And you made me sweat over this for months without sayin' anything to me about it?"

Monica shook her head, but her smile told her true feelings as she playfully said, "Well, at least now I won't have to hear any more about that girl you met out in California!" Melody laughed with Monica joining in. Finally they stopped laughing; Monica said, "C'mon, let's go sit back with the other couples. I mean, if that's okay with you," she added, playfully intoning her words quite like Mel had done just a minute earlier.

Mel smiled and squeezed Monica's hand. "I think I can handle that," she said.

Not quite twenty minutes later, Miley stretched. "Think I'm gettin' out before I get too hot," she said during a break in the conversation. Having a chance to talk face to face with so many of her family and friends had been wonderful, but Miley knew she needed to cool off a bit.

As Miley stood and turned to step out of the jacuzzi, Lilly watched her wife's dripping body before she dreamily said, "You never get too hot for me, Miles," prompting laughter and several playful comments from around the hot tub.

Miley looked over her shoulder, giving Lilly a look both teasing and loving before she grabbed her robe and pulled it on over her wet body. She walked back over to the tub and bent down to whisper something in Lilly's ear. Whatever she said made Lilly grin madly before she carefully grabbed Miley's head and kissed her warmly. After several seconds, Lilly said, "Be right in, hon."

Miley looked over at Kaela and Jackson with a loaded smile. "We can beat ya'll's butts at Rook, Jackson," she finally said.

"What did you say?" said Jackson, standing up before Kaela could pull him back down. "Kae, she just threw down the gauntlet on us! No, she picked it up and smacked us across the face with it!"

Seeing that she wasn't going to be able to defuse a long-standing rivalry between brother and sister, Kaela just rolled her eyes. She turned to look at Lilly and said, "I think our spouses just declared war on each other, Lilly."

Lilly nodded. "Yeah, and I don't really know to play Rook," she said with the voice of a woman resigned to her fate. She looked at Luanne. "Lu, you mind to help me learn?"

The smile that slid across Luanne's face was most definitely competitive. "I'd love to," she said with a cheerful voice. "You ready to get dried off, baby?" she asked Ron, who kissed her before gallantly climbing out of the hot tub to fetch his wife's towel and robe for her. "Thanks, babe," Luanne said as she rewarded her husband with a much warmer and prolonged kiss for his efforts.

Miley walked back over to where Peyton, Walt, Monica and Melody were gathered together in the hot tub, talking in slightly lower tones. "Hey, what time's your ride pickin' ya'll up?" she asked, directing her question mainly to Peyton.

Peyton checked her watch, which thankfully was waterproof. Or at least she hoped it was. "In about ten minutes," she said.

"Well, don't you think you need to get out so you can get dried off and changed back into regular clothes?" asked Miley.

Peyton started to protest, but the look she was getting from her aunt told her that she needed to comply. She smiled. "Okay, Aunt Miley." She looked down at her sister and their dates. "Let's go, guys. Don't want anybody waitin' on us."

Less than two minutes later, Amy looked around. Miley had gone inside with Kaela, Jackson, Luanne and Ron, and Lilly had apparently made off with the remaining potato chips and dip. "Well damn it, Dee," Amy said as she sat back down in the warm water, "It sure looks like everybody else's got up and left us alone out here."

Dee, who had been lying back trying to settle her jangling nerves, lifted her head up and rubbed her eyes; she was enjoying the warmth nearly as much as being close to her friend whom she had begun to dream of as much more than simply a friend. But she was hesitant to risk revealing her true feelings just yet. Sure, Amy seemed comfortable with Miley and Lilly being with each other, but how would she feel when it was her on the spot? Mentally, Dee winced. Now wasn't the time to take that risk. Maybe later. She sighed and said, "So, is it—" Her words stuck in her throat when she saw Amy hovering just inches in front of her face. "Amy?" she said, her words nearly a squeak.

"Hey," replied Amy, a smile that signified either fun, trouble, or both on her face. Amy slid her knees up, one on each side of Dee's thighs as she straddled her slightly built friend. "Come on, Dee," Amy said, her lips inching closer to Dee's as she spoke. "You know you want to kiss me. And I sure as hell want to kiss you." Amy's left hand gently pressed against Dee's flushed cheek as her right hand gripped Dee's ribs beneath the water, sending the currently magenta-haired skater girl's heart into overdrive. "Look up," Amy said, smiling even more broadly.

Dee lifted her gaze up the canopy covering the hot tub. _I'll be damned. Mistletoe._ She looked back into Amy's hazel eyes. "So I guess we have to kiss now, huh?" she asked, unable to keep from grinning like a fool.

"Uh huh," said Amy as she closed her eyes and leaned forward, their lips finally touching after months of secret fantasies and unbidden dreams of romance for each of them. As Amy lifted her right hand to grip Dee's head and pull them deeper into each other's kiss, Dee's hand moved of their own accord to Amy's butt, pulling the raven-haired girl's body tight against her own. Dee was only partially aware of how Amy began to slowly grind her body against her stomach, because she was swept up in the kiss that was growing to consume not only her entire world but also her very heart.

On the other side of the kiss, Amy's racing thoughts finally shut up and gave her peace now that she was acting on her desires that she had carefully kept bottled up for countless nights. As her brain screamed for air, she finally felt herself pull back just enough for them to breathe. "I've wondered what your lips would feel like for I don't know how long, Dee," Amy whispered as she opened her eyes to stare into Dee's.

"What did they taste like?" Dee asked, curious to know and eager to focus on anything to try and slow down her heart, which she was sure was about to rip out of her chest and run away. Amy smiled, and Dee realized that her heart wasn't going to get a chance to relax for a long, long time.

"They taste like my best friend... who I'm in love with." Suddenly, fear stole across Amy's face. "Oh my God, you _are_ okay with this, aren't you? I mean, with you and me... I mean, I don't want to do anything to mess up our friendship, Dee, but I think we can..." Her voice trailed off as she felt Dee's fingers slip just beneath the fabric of her bikini bottoms, stopping after making firm contact with the bare skin of her buttocks. "Yeah, Dee..." she whispered, closing her eyes and savoring the electric sensation of her best friend's fingers on her bare skin.

Dee smiled. "Yeah, I'm okay with it," she said, trying to maintain a calm facade but not having much success. "Since I realized I loved you about six months ago and was just tryin' to work up the guts to tell you."

Amy smiled as she shifted more of her weight to rest on Dee's lap. "Well, looks like you worked up that nerve after all."

Dee took one hand out of Amy's bikini bottoms and used it to pull her friend against her body, letting them kiss once again for long seconds. When they parted for air, Dee whispered, "Merry Christmas, Amy."

"Mmm, Merry Christmas, Dee," Amy replied, giving another soft kiss to her new girlfriend. "You think Miley and Lilly'll mind if we skip out a bit early tonight?"

"I think they'll forgive us. And somebody had to put the mistletoe up there, after all. Who else'd do it if not the two of them?" Dee leaned back, and Amy went down with her, maintaining skin-to-skin contact between their upper bodies.

Amy sighed happily as she wrapped her arms around her best friend. "Then let's go. I want to unwrap my present early."

Dee looked a bit surprised at that statement. "Uh, I kinda... haven't got your gift wrapped yet, Amy," she hesitantly admitted.

Amy leaned back, then she stuck out her tongue at Dee briefly. "Damn, Dee, that's not what I meant!" she said with a laugh. "I meant, I want to unwrap _this_ present tonight," she said, lightly tugging on the shoulder strap of Dee's black bikini.

Dee smiled up at her friend for ten years and her roommate for the last four. "Only if I get to unwrap my present too," she said as she shifted them into a standing position.

"Then let's get goin', before the high schoolers hit us up for a ride home so they don't have to ride with Peyton and Mel's mom. I'll call Miley once we get in your truck and let her know we'll talk to 'em tomorrow."

As blue eyes watched through the frost-limned window in the back porch door, Amy and Dee stood and quickly grabbed their robes and clothes, slipping on their boots and then running for the warmth of Dee's truck as they held hands. Once they were consumed by the night, Luanne turned and leaned against the back door, smiling at how successful her mistletoe had been. She wasn't entirely sure that she could ever repay Amy for all the terrors she had inflicted on the sweet girl during their childhood, but helping her find the courage to take a chance on love might be a good start. "Merry Christmas, Ames," she said softly to herself. "You deserve it." She turned and walked into the kitchen, ready to administer a beating to Jackson in Rook.

Christmas morning came before the sun peeked above the horizon, with Miley and Lilly both waking around seven. They had planned on sleeping in, but they were both too excited to stay in bed once Miley stirred, involuntarily waking Lilly from slumber as well. After a gentle session of early morning lovemaking, the two young women got in the shower, basking in the warm cascade as they took their time getting clean.

Not long after opening their own private presents to each other, the shouts and squeals of small children heralded the arrival of the first family to arrive at Ruthie's house. Jackson and Kaela and their two boys hurried inside, chased by the bitter cold blanketing the valley that morning. Miley and Lilly took turns holding their nephews Sam and Jefferson as they tore into their presents. Sam was now seven, turning eight in February, and Jefferson, at two, was just beginning to exhibit the same glee as his older brother when it came to tearing into presents.

_It would be so easy to spoil them_, thought Miley as she sat on the floor and watched Sam open his next present. _But not only would it raise questions about Lilly and me, it wouldn't be fair to those kids. They need to grow up just like Lilly and I did, so they appreciate what they have._ She felt strong legs against her hips before she saw Lilly's calves slip up on each side of her. As Lilly scooted in close behind Miley to hold her wife happily, Miley closed her eyes and leaned back as Jefferson stood on chubby legs and ran to his mother, who was holding his next present from "Papaw" Robbie Ray.

"Penny for your thoughts," Miley said, twirling a lock of her long dark brown hair as she rested her head against Lilly's shoulder.

"I was just enjoying how loved I feel here," Lilly said softly, emotion resonating beneath every word she carefully spoke.

Miley blinked her eyes twice, moisture abruptly present in each of them. "You _are_ loved here, baby," she said, her voice's timbre shifting slightly higher.

"That's one of the best gifts I could ever get, Miles. It's only behind having you and having our baby, and there's nothing I appreciate more than you two." She kissed Miley on the temple. "Thank you again for asking me to be part of your life, Miles."

Miley leaned her head slightly to the left so that it was resting against Lilly's head rather than leaning back against her shoulder. "Honey, I didn't have to ask; you _always_ were part of my life, whether we realized it or not. And you better know that by now, I tell you so dang much."

"Well, thanks for making it official, then, by marrying me," Lilly said, speaking softly due to her proximity to Miley's ear. "Otherwise your Mamaw wouldn't be letting me do the things I do to you when we're here." She ended her sentence with a light lick to Miley's upper ear, making her Tennessee bride shiver with excitement.

"You cold, Miley?" asked Kaela. "Need a blanket?" The slight smirk on her face told Miley that Kaela had apparently noticed Lilly's little love lick. Hopefully her dad and her mamaw had missed it.

"No thanks, Kae," Miley said, fighting to keep her voice composed despite the inner fires rising inside her. "Fire's plenty warm," she added, and that statement was true both for the fire warming the house as well as for the heat inside her. Miley debated with herself for a bit before reaching a decision. _It's Christmas. They'll forgive us._

Miley stood, turning and holding out a hand to help Lilly up. Lilly smiled as she looked into her wife's eyes, taking the proffered hand and letting Miley help her to her feet. "We, uh, still have some presents to unwrap to each other," Miley said to no one in particular as she and Lilly made their way to the hallway, hand in hand as Lilly lightly tugged Miley along. "Won't be too long!"

"Says you," whispered Lilly from the safety of the hallway, a positively naughty grin on her face as she opened the bedroom door for her now literally blushing bride.

Not quite an hour later, Miley and Lilly began to stir in the mess of jumbled covers and sheets that their bed had become. They had brought two room deodorizers to help neutralize the musky smell of sex that could easily accumulate in the relatively small room, since it was insulated by quilts and winter made it too cold to keep the windows open for the room to air out. The two of them had never thought much about the scent of their excitement and lovemaking other than how it turned them on even more, but they had no desire to explain to any younger family members—or older family members, for that matter—exactly what that primal scent in their room was.

A knock on the door woke both young women from their peaceful rest. They hadn't so much fallen asleep as they had become content holding each other tightly, face to face as they cuddled beneath a single sheet, letting their considerable body heat keep them warm.

"Hey, get your butts out of bed!" came the voice of Peyton through the door.

"Or we'll come in there and drag you out!" added Melody.

Lilly giggled as she continued playing with Miley's hair, much of which was across her chest, concealing most of her breasts. Lilly twisted a few strands of her wife's hair into a soft brush, gently tickling Miley's right nipple with it until Miley finally couldn't resist the tickling any longer, twisting into and against Lilly with a fit of laughter.

"No fair," mumbled Miley from where she had buried her face between Lilly's breasts, placing soft kisses on each with infinite patience.

Lilly sighed dramatically. "Love and war, remember?" she said, kissing Miley on the crown of her head. "You know, even your scalp is cute."

Miley jerked her head up, nearly knocking Lilly in the nose. "My scalp?" she asked, disbelief written across her face. "Really? _Really?_"

With great seriousness, Lilly nodded slowly. "Cutest scalp I've ever seen," she said with a tiny smile.

Miley rolled her eyes and fell back on the bed. "It's official. Love's driven you completely nuts."

Lilly moved her left arm over Miley's chest, using her fingers to walk down to Miley's stomach, her lower lip lightly sticking out as she concentrated upon her target.

"Lilly, don't you _dare_ tickle my belly button!"

_Bingo._

"LILLY!"

After several minutes Miley and Lilly opened the door to their bedroom, now fully dressed. They saw Peyton standing directly in front of the door, but she quickly jerked her hands back behind her as soon as the door opened. Miley frowned. "Pickin' the lock, huh?" she asked, already knowing the answer.

"Well, we warned you ten minutes ago," Peyton said in weak protest. She turned around to face her sister, standing there with a massive plastic cup of some kind. "Might as well put the marbles up, Mel," she said, disappointment in her voice.

As Melody and Peyton dejectedly turned and walked down the hallway back toward the living room and kitchen, Lilly looked curiously at Miley. "Marbles? I thought she had cold water in that cup or something."

Miley shook her head. "Mamaw keeps a big cup full a' marbles in the freezer. Fastest way to break somebody from sleepin' in, dumpin' a bunch of ice cold marbles into bed with 'em." Miley involuntarily shivered. "Plus there's no mess to clean up from water or meltin' ice."

Lilly smiled as she put her arm around Miley's waist. "Sounds like my little pookie knows from experience."

Miley smiled herself now, the chilly memories no match for the sunny warmth of Lilly's presence. "I mighta had it done to me a time or two growin' up," she admitted.

As the two of them re-entered the living room, they noticed that the crowd of people had grown even more. Now the large living room was very nearly full, with several of the women seeking out seats in the slightly more peaceful kitchen. Ruthie was bustling back and forth, checking different dishes that were nearly ready for Christmas brunch, with Robbie Ray's wife Noel and Dolly helping prepare plates and drinks. As Miley and Lilly watched, Miley's aunt Vicky left the kitchen, tossing a potholder glove onto the counter as she turned and snatched up a camera as she went to the living room.

Miley and Lilly stopped just beyond the hallway, taking in the happy chaos that ensued from having so many children both big and small opening presents. Wrapping paper was everywhere, covering most of the floor and much of the chairs and couches, despite Robbie Ray and Jackson patrolling, each carrying a large black garbage bag and stuffing scraps of wrapping paper into them as soon as they picked them up. Most of the children were in front of the tree, including Jackson and Kaela's two sons, who were swarming over their mother as she tried to dole out presents to everyone quickly enough to placate the youngsters, ten-year-old Andy and twelve-year-old Heath Burns, first cousins to Melody and Peyton and second cousins to Miley, and Peyton and Melody themselves. Miley's cousins Paul and David Burns sat on the big couch with their wives, taking in the gleeful sight as Miley's Uncle Earl and his wife Pearl watched from the smaller couch on the other side of the living room.

"Wow," said Lilly. "No matter how many times I see this, it's still so amazing."

"It makes you appreciate your family, doesn't it?" said a voice from behind them, making both Miley and Lilly spin around.

"Lu!" said Miley, immediately pulling her sister into a hug with Lilly wrapping her arms around both of them. "Was wonderin' when you'd get here."

"We came in the back door," said Luanne, pointing to the door that Ron was just now closing. "Figured it'd be less like a combat zone that way."

"Good call," said Lilly, releasing her wife and sister-in-law to walk down the hall and hug her older brother. "Merry Christmas, Ron," she said, hugging Ron firmly enough that she began to squeeze the breath out of him.

"Lilly," Ron said, his voice squeaking slightly as his sister tightened her grip. Finally he got a hand free and gave her ribs a quick poke, making Lilly lightly squeal and jump back. "Brat," he said, not meaning it in the least.

Lilly's eyes sparkled with mischievousness as she looked at her brother; while older, there was still a streak of playfulness inside him, and Lilly doubted that would ever go away. She hoped it didn't, because she suspected that playfulness and ability to find happiness in so many different things was part of why Luanne had been attracted to him from the beginning. It only made sense, after all, for someone who had spent most of her life being unhappy to want to find as much happiness in everyday life as she possibly could. Suddenly Lilly surged forward again, but this time she didn't squeeze Ron too tightly. "Don't ever grow up, big brother," she whispered. "Not all the way."

Ron was frozen for a few seconds before he finally returned the genuine hug from his baby sister. It had been odd, watching Lilly go from annoying teenager to being in love and then married in just two years, but there was no doubt in Ron Truscott's mind that Lilly had found her perfect partner in Miley. "You do the same for me, Sweaty," he said, pulling out an old nickname that he hadn't used in years for his athletic sister. "We did good with our wives, huh?" he added, feeling himself tear up slightly.

Lilly nodded against his shoulder. "The best," she agreed.

Miley and Luanne watched as their spouses shared a touching hug. "That is so sweet," said Miley as Luanne nodded.

"Ron normally tries to keep that sentimental side hidden from everybody else," Luanne said. "But he couldn't hide it from me for too long," she added, a jaunty smile on her face.

Miley turned to regard her twin sister. "You and your puzzles," she said. "Never could find one you couldn't beat."

Luanne shrugged, and Miley noted that what would have once been cockiness, if not arrogance, had softened into a confident acceptance of herself. "I love 'em," she said with a honest smile. "Can't help it."

Now it was Miley's turn to smile smugly. "Then you're gonna love what Lilly and me got you!" she said, hurrying into the living room. Luanne, Lilly and Ron followed, stopping just a moment once inside the living room. Miley carefully knifed her way through the crowded room, being careful to not step on any new gifts or small children as she made her way to the large Christmas tree. She bent over to grab Luanne's gift, which she and Lilly had wrapped with a special paper so they could quickly identify it from the other presents. Victorious, she turned and repeated her careful but expedient walk through the living room. "Here," she said, handing it to her sister. "Bet you can't get your gift until tomorrow," she said, playfully challenging Luanne.

Luanne's blue eyes lifted up, locking with Miley's just long enough to let Miley know that the challenge had been accepted. "Knowing the two of you got it, I'm sure I'm going to love it," she said sincerely. She hugged Miley and Lilly both, the relatively light present still in her right hand as she subtly estimated its weight. "Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas to you too, Lu," said Miley as Lilly giggled at the rhyming in Miley's words.

"Sorry," Lilly said, "but that just sounded so cute the way you said it." She smiled. She loved it when Miley's accent strengthened slightly, as it always did when they came back to Tennessee for any length of time. "Guess we're just suckers for Southern ladies, huh, Ron?"

"You could say that," replied Ron, watching as his wife softly shook her gift, listening to the result. Luanne looked over at Ron, her eyes asking some silent question. "Go ahead," he said with a smile. "We both know you're not stopping until you figure out whatever it is."

"Love you, baby," Luanne said as she gave Ron a kiss on the lips, then she turned and hurried into the living room, claiming a seat on the periphery of the room as she tore into her gift.

"How long you think it'll take her to get it open?" asked Ron as Luanne pulled out a puzzle box a bit larger than a paperback book, examining it carefully.

"That one?" asked Miley, turning to look at her brother-in-law. "Probably ten, fifteen minutes."

Lilly grinned as she added, "The next box inside the first one is a bit harder. It'll take her a little longer to get that one open."

"Then there's the map..." said Miley, unable to contain her smile as she watched Ron's expression shift. "Hey, she'll love it, I promise you!"

Ron felt cold chills run down his spine suddenly. "It's not the keys to a car, is it?" he asked. "Please tell me you didn't buy her a car, because that would be tough to explain."

Lilly playfully pushed Ron backwards. "You big goober," she chided him softly. "It's not a car, or the keys to a car. You think we'd do something crazy like that?"

Ron looked back and forth at Miley and Lilly, arms around each other as they slightly leaned into each other. "Totally," he said.

"Busted you," Miley said, turning to tease her wife before she looked back at Ron. "But it really isn't a car, or the keys to a car, we promise."

Ron continued to eye them warily. "Okay," he said. "As long as it's not something too big that would be hard to explain." He looked over their shoulders. "And it looks like my wife is ahead of schedule," he added.

Miley and Lilly turned to see Luanne staring at them, a smile on her face as she popped open the puzzle box. Then she looked down, and the smile turned into a more serious expression as she looked at the smaller puzzle box that had been hidden inside the larger one. She looked back up and gave Miley and Lilly a light Look, crinkling her mouth and wrinkling her forehead as she glared at them.

Half a country away, Mikayla stood on a small front porch outside a house in rural Texas. Despite the cold penetrating her thick coat and jeans, she had been standing there for several minutes, battling herself internally about whether or not she could—or should—knock. The decision was made for her when the front door abruptly opened, revealing her brother Peter. "_Madre de dios_, Mickey!" he cried out, grabbing his chest. "You scared the devil out of me!"

"Merry Christmas, Petey," said Mikayla, a smile coming unbidden to her face. "Didn't want to spoil the surprise by telling you I was coming."

"I was plenty surprised, that's for sure," Peter replied, unable to contain his own smile at seeing his little sister again. "Come inside, Mickey, it's cold tonight for Texas. You're probably really cold, since you're used to California now." Peter hurried out to the curb, carrying a trash bag probably full of wrapping paper which he left at the side of the road, but when he turned he saw that his sister still hadn't moved. She had two large bags beside her, but she still made no move to pick them up as he walked back over to her.

"He's not in there, is he?" Mikayla asked, her voice pleading, almost frightened as Peter walked back to the house.

"No, Mickey," he answered, and the relief on her face was immense. "I haven't seen him in over a month now." He gestured at the bags, which he could now see contained presents wrapped in red and green paper and ribbons. "Need a hand?"

"Sure," she said, her smile once again present as she picked up one bag while her brother took the other, letting her walk into the house first.

As Mikayla walked into the relatively small but warm house, she looked around, taking in the pictures on every wall and covering seemingly every flat surface in the foyer and living room. "Merry Christmas, everybody!" she said, pleased when Peter's wife Mona gave her a smile that was welcoming and genuine. But it was the reaction of little Esmerelda that made Mikayla's heart do a little dance.

"AUNT MICKEY!" shouted the five-year-old girl as she ran forward and wrapped her arms around Mikayla's jean-clad leg. "You made it! I knew you'd be here!"

Mikayla set her bag of presents down and bent over to pick up the youngster. "Wow, you're getting so big!" she said, adding, "But you still don't weigh anything!" She clasped the little girl to her chest, enjoying the feeling of unconditional love radiating from the little girl. _I could have had this feeling all the time. But I threw it away._ A tear escaped from her left eye as she forced her thoughts back to happier things, such as the squirming little girl who had spotted the bags of presents.

"Put me down, Aunt Mickey! I see presents!"

Mikayla spent the rest of the morning catching up with her brother and sister-in-law while taking the time to play with Esmerelda and her new toys and books. There were the usual questions about how Mikayla's career was going, and she took the time to reassure Peter and Mona that things were going fairly well.

After a long silence, Mikayla finally said, "I haven't had anything to drink or done any..." She trailed off as she glanced at Esme, playing in a corner of the room with some of her new dolls and their horses that Mikayla had brought her. Satisfied that the girl was far enough away to not hear, she continued with a low voice, "...or done any drugs since I've been back. At all. I get tested at least once a week as part of my contract with the record company."

"Good," said Mona as Peter nodded. "Those things that are so readily available to you out there, Mickey, that's why Petey and I worry about you."

Mikayla picked at a fingernail as she said, "Yeah, well, I can promise all of you that I'm not ever going back to that. I'd rather die first." She looked over their shoulders into the next room of the house. "Some of the things I did, I don't think I can ever be forgiven for doing."

"God can forgive us for any trespass, Mickey," said Peter, "but you have to forgive yourself, too."

Mikayla snorted, a bitter laugh. "I can't," she said, looking first at Esme and then at Peter and Mona, the only three people in the world she called her family. "Some stuff I can forgive myself for. But not all of it."

"Mickey," said Mona as she moved to sit beside her sister-in-law. "You went through hell growing up. Those memories are part of what drove you do some of the self-destructive things you did. _That_ you couldn't help."

Mikayla felt herself start to cry as she leaned against the fair-haired woman who had married her brother seven years ago. "I should have been stronger," she said, more to herself than to anyone else. "I knew better, but I did all that stupid shit anyway."

"But you've got a second chance now, Mickey," said Mona, her voice as soothing as she could make it. "And this time you can do it right. You can do it without all the drugs and alcohol and getting out of control."

"I _am_ doing it that way," Mikayla said, sniffing. "I just wish I could get rid of Margot."

"You're still using that bitch as your manager?" said Peter angrily. "Damnit, Mickey, you're smarter than that! You should get as far away from her as you can. Instead of getting you help, she just kept covering up after your messes. She saw you killing yourself, and she didn't do a damn thing to help you!"

"Don't cuss in the house, Daddy," said Esme. Apparently this conversation had become more interesting than her new toys.

"Sorry, Esme," said Peter, slightly embarrassed.

"I think your Aunt Mickey could use a hug, Esme," said Mona, smiling as she got up from her seat. The little girl happily jumped up on the couch and wrapped her arms around Mikayla, who found herself smiling despite all the tears and emotions that had been stirred up by the conversation.

"A hug can make everything feel better," Esme said confidently.

"Thank you," replied Mikayla, returning the little girl's hug as warmly as she could.

After a few seconds, Esme said quietly, "I know why you were crying."

Mikayla looked up. Peter and Mona had quietly gone into another room of the house, and it was just the two of them in the living room. Curious, she asked, "Why?"

Esme hesitated for a moment, as if about to say something she knew she wasn't supposed to. Finally she said, "I bet you miss your mommy, don't you?"

Mikayla's tears ran down her cheeks as she nodded. "That's part of it, baby."

Esme looked down at her lap. "I miss my mommy, too. Not my Mommy Mona, because she's been the only mommy I can remember, but my first mommy before she died."

Mikayla pulled the girl into her lap, holding her tightly as she whispered, "We can miss them together, okay?" Esme nodded against Mikayla's chest as Mikayla began to softly sing a song from her childhood, rocking the little girl until they both fell asleep on the couch.

"YES!" said Luanne with a triumphant cry, startling nearly everybody in Ruthie's house. "Sorry," she said aloud as dozens of eyes gave her a look. She released the final clasp on the small puzzle box and opened it up with a soft creak of its hinges. Inside was a sealed envelope with her name written on it. She lifted the envelope, noting that something solid was inside, along with what felt like a folded-up paper. Carefully she tore the envelope open, shaking a small key out and into the felt-lined interior of the open puzzle box. She unfolded the paper and read the note written on it:

_Merry Christmas, Luanne!_

_Obviously you've opened the second box, so now you can go get your present. It was a little too big to keep with us at Mamaw's, so we left it at a friend's house. The address is at the bottom of this letter. You'll figure out what to use the key for. Oh, you'll also need to remember this code: 1 2 2 1._

_Hope you enjoy your present!_

_Miley and Lilly_

Luanne picked up the key, turning it over to inspect it carefully. It wasn't big enough to be a car key or a house key, she didn't think, and honestly she had no idea what it was for. She could read the easily identifiable "Master" logo of Master Lock, but that didn't really help her much. She got up and grabbed her coat, catching Ron's eye and motioning for him to join her.

In the kitchen Miley and Lilly were watching closely. When Luanne and Ron went out the door, they turned to look at each other. "She's gonna freak," said Miley with a sneaky smile.

"I hope so," replied Lilly, a similarly sneaky smile on her face.

As she drove down a small road about two miles away from Ruthie's, Luanne couldn't slow her racing thoughts. _What the hell did they get me? And why is there a key and some kind of code?_ She turned to Ron. "They didn't get me a car, did they?" she asked suddenly.

"They both promised me it wasn't a car," Ron reassured his wife. "But I honestly have no idea what they _did_ get you."

Luanne hit the brakes quickly, sending Ron pitching forward against his now-taut seatbelt. "This is the address," Luanne said. She backed up slightly and turned the car onto a small gravel road, being careful to not hit the mailbox with the number matching the address on her mysterious note. They had only driven a few car lengths when Luanne spotted a metal gate across the road, reflective tape shining brightly where the sun shone through the tightly packed trees.

Luanne pulled closer to the gate before shifting the car into Park. She got out of the car, pulling the key out of her pocket as she walked forward. A quick inspection revealed a large padlock on the gate, set inside a recessed steel cage to prevent anyone from breaking it off with a sledgehammer or power tools. The key slid into the lock neatly, opening it with a crisp click as she turned the key. She unhooked the gate, walking across the road to open it. Ron drove the car through, letting Luanne close the gate behind them. After Luanne got back into the car, Ron resumed the drive down the driveway.

"This is really out of the way," Ron said. "I mean, even for Misty Hollow, huh?"

"Yeah," said Luanne, her mind still working on the short string of numbers in the letter. Even through the mental gymnastics her present had required, she found herself smiling. She _really_ loved puzzles, and Miley and Lilly had put some time and effort into their gift to her.

As they finally pulled up into a circle that brought them in front of the large wooden house, Luanne got out and looked at the multilevel home. She had lived in this valley her entire childhood, but she had never been back here. Her daddy had always told her that this driveway was an old logging road that wasn't used anymore, and she had never gotten the urge to walk this far down this winding gravel road. She guessed they were probably half a mile from the main road through the valley by now, maybe a bit farther.

The house itself blended into the surrounding trees quite well, with a woody mix favoring evergreens such as pine and cedar over coniferous trees like maple and oak. The overall effect was lovely, as whoever had built the house had apparently taken the surroundings into consideration when choosing the style and materials for the house.

"Is anybody home?" Luanne called to Ron as he rang the doorbell.

"Hello!" Ron called out, ringing the doorbell again before knocking loudly on the door. He moved to peer in one of the windows. "Don't think anybody's home, Lu."

_Lu,_ thought Luanne as she considered the diminutive version of her name that only Ron, Miley and Lilly called her. _The letters L and U. L is the twelfth letter in the alphabet. U is the twenty-first. So in the most simple letter-number cipher, LU would be... _ "One-two-two-one," Luanne whispered to herself. "The code."

To say that Ron Truscott was afraid of being this far out in the woods of Tennessee on Christmas Day, pounding on someone's front door without getting a response, might have been a bit strong. But he was most certainly on edge. So when he turned to look at his wife and saw her break into a full run around the side of the house without warning, he nearly jumped out of his skin. "Luanne!" he yelled, leaping off the porch and chasing her around the house.

There was a slight downhill slope as he ran around the house, so by the time he reached the back of the house he saw his wife come to a stop about forty yards behind the house, staring at the house now that she had turned around. "Lu, honey, what's wrong?" Ron said as he came to a stop next to his wife. "Talk to me Luanne, please, you're scaring me!"

Tears trickled down Luanne's face, stinging her red cheeks as the bitter wind whipped across them. "It's the house from my dream," she whispered. Turning to look at Ron, she said more firmly, "It's the house from my dream!" She grabbed Ron's arm and awkwardly pushed him toward the house. "Check the door," she said, not trusting her legs to move. "Please."

Ron jogged back to the house, stopping at a ground level door beneath a large wooden porch. "There's some kind of box on the doorknob!" he yelled back to Luanne. "It has—"

"Numbers on it," she finished with him as he spoke. "Try hitting one, two, two, one. That should open it." _LU. Amazing._

A distinct click could be heard as Ron unlocked the box. At that sound Luanne raced over to him, reaching his side as he turned around. "It's another key," he said, holding up the shiny object. He placed the key in Luanne's hand. "Please tell me Miley and Lilly didn't—"

"I think they did," Luanne said, scarcely able to believe the magnitude of what her sister and sister-in-law had done. She slid the key into the lock, turning it once to open the deadbolt. She turned the doorknob and pushed the door open. The house was pristine, and the smell of new wood and carpet was evident. Though finished, it appeared to be completely empty, ready for a family to move in at any time. She quickly spotted a piece of paper lying on the counter. She snatched it up and quickly read it.

_Merry Christmas and welcome to your new home! We love you!_

_M & L._

"Oh my God, Ron, this is too much!" She turned around. "How are we gonna explain this to everybody?"

Ron put his arms around his wife, holding her close to him as she embraced him tightly. "Knowing the two of them, I bet they've already got something figured out, hon."

Luanne leaned back so she could look into Ron's eyes. "It's funny that we had decided to move to Tennessee just the other night, huh? Because it had to take at least a month to build this house, probably longer with the crazy weather up here." She paused and looked into her husband's eyes. "How did they know?"

As Ron shook his head, indicating he had no good answer to his wife's question, Luanne looked directly into his eyes. "This is the house in my dream the other night, Ron. This was _our_ house. Us... and our son."

Luanne felt Ron stiffen in her embrace. "I'm going to be a father?" he stammered.

Luanne grinned. "Well, no, not just yet, goofy," she said, poking him in the chest. "I'm still on my birth control." Then she gave him a positively wicked grin that set his insides on fire. She shook off her coat, tossing it on the floor beside them. She popped the snap on her jeans and began to unzip the zipper. "You, uh, want to start working on that son, big boy?" she asked, smirking as she pushed her jeans to the ground. "Because that sounds like a really nice way to break in our new house."

"Why, Luanne Truscott," said Ron as his wife began working on his pants, the tip of her tongue protruding just slightly between her lips, "you are a very, very bad girl."

Luanne grinned as she replied, "Then it's a good thing Santa already passed through, huh?"

As they helped wash dishes after the brunch, Miley and Lilly found themselves content to work in silence, stealing little bumps of their hips together or quick kisses on the cheek as they scrubbed the dishes. While Ruthie's dishwasher worked just fine, sometimes it was easier to do large loads of dishes the old-fashioned way. And so Miley washed while Lilly rinsed, with Melody drying and Peyton putting clean dishes away in a neat assembly line.

The buzz of a text on her phone got Lilly's attention at the same time a chirp from Miley's signaled a message for her. Miley and Lilly looked at each, then Miley lifted an eyebrow and asked, "What are the odds?"

"When it comes to you two?" asked Peyton as she fished Miley's phone out of her front pocket with her clean, dry hands. "Pretty dang good." She checked the messages. "It's from Amy Hearon. She wants you and Lilly to come watch movies with her and Dee tonight."

"That sounds like fun," said Lilly. "I'll text her back in a minute once my hands are dry."

Peyton smiled as she relayed the rest of the message. "She also says that she and Dee have something to tell you two tonight," she said, raising an eyebrow in the classic Stewart pose.

Lilly thought before she said, "Well, that's interesting."

Miley removed the stopper from the drain, letting the sudsy water drain out from her side of the deep sink. "Man, sure am glad that's the last of those dishes," she said as she ran some cool water to wash her own hands. With a softer voice, Miley said to Lilly, "You think they did it? Last night?"

Lilly stopped rinsing the last plate and turned to look at her wife. "Don't be a doofus, Miles," she said just as softly. "What else would it be, other than them finally telling each other that they're nuts for each other? They've been dancing around it for at least a year."

"Amy and Dee?" asked Melody, finally catching enough of the nearly whispered conversation to piece it together.

"Shhh!" came from both Miley and Lilly at once. "Let them tell everybody at their own pace, if that is what they're wantin' to tell us," said Miley. "Not every couple is crazy enough to go from first kiss to first time to coming out to everybody in just a couple of days."

Lilly laughed. "No, just us, huh Miles?" she asked teasingly, getting a smack on her butt from her wife.

"You got it, Lil," Miley said as she put her arms around Lilly, who was starting to wash her own hands now that the water was draining out of her side of the sink. Miley slid her hand down in Lilly's front pocket, bypassing the phone in favor of digging around in that warm pocket for a few fun seconds.

"Mmm, better stop, Miles," cautioned Lilly as she closed her eyes and began to lean back against the woman she loved in every way. "Or you're gonna have some explaining to do when I start to moan."

As much as she wanted to keep teasing her wife, Miley knew Lilly was right. She sighed and made a show of withdrawing her hand, Lilly's phone in her grasp. She flipped through the messages, immediately spotting the newest one. "Looks like Lu and Ron found their Christmas present," she said cheerfully.

"What did you get them?" asked Melody, curiosity written all over her face.

"Don't be a nose, Mel," fussed Peyton, grabbing the last plate from her sister. "That's rude to ask what somebody got somebody else for Christmas." She turned to look at her aunts. "But since you've already asked and everything..."

"Uh uh," said Miley, holding out a hand to forestall any further inquiries. "You can ask them next time you see 'em."

Peyton whispered something to Melody that sounded worrisomely like "sex toys" to Miley, causing the brunette to give their two nieces a nasty look. "Be nice," she warned them. "After all, it _is_ Christmas."

The sudden ringing of Lilly's phone startled Miley so badly that she nearly dropped it, sending Peyton and Melody into a laughing fit. "Yeah, yeah, laugh it up," said Miley. She turned to hand Lilly her phone only to find her best friend hiding what was obviously a grin as well as silent laughter behind a hand covering her mouth. "I swear, sometimes you're just as bad as they are," Miley said lightly as she answered the phone. "Lilly's phone."

"_Merry Christmas. And you don't sound like Lilly."_

"Hey Jen!" said Miley. "Merry Christmas to you and Lee! Ya'll havin' a good time someplace warm?"

"_Hell yes. Just wanted to share some nice news with the two of you. I was waiting until I figured you'd be done opening presents."_

Miley motioned for Lilly to go into the bedroom, ignoring the snickers from their nieces. Once they were safely inside the room with the door closed, Miley said, "Switchin' you over to speaker phone, Jen."

"_Well, turn down the volume unless you want everybody in the room to hear."_

Miley tapped the volume button several times until it was soft enough that she and Lilly had to lean in close to hear it. She placed the phone in the center of the bed, and she and Lilly stretched out on their stomachs, keeping their heads next to the phone.

"Ready, Jen," said Lilly. "What did you want to tell us?"

"She said it was good news," said Miley before Jen could speak.

"Cool, the last good news really rocked. Hey, are you still in Hawaii?"

There was a noticeable pause for a second or two, then Jen's voice said, _"How are you two so fucking cheerful this early in the morning?"_

"Jen, it's just after noon here," said Lilly. "What time is it there in Hawaii?"

"_Oh, let me check the clock here... Let's see, it's— TOO FUCKING EARLY!"_

Miley and Lilly both buried their heads in the covers, hoping that the blankets would muffle their laughing. "Okay, we're sorry," Miley finally said. "Really. Go ahead and tell us the news so you can get back to sleep."

There was an obvious yawn from their manager, then she said, _"Oh, well, nothing big. Just, you know, Lola Montana's been nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress."_

Lilly turned a frightening shade of white, unable to believe her ears. "Did you just say that I, I mean her, I mean me, I mean... Huh?" she sputtered out.

Miley, on the other hand, had no confusion about what she had heard. "I told you!" she said, flipping Lilly over and moving to straddle her best friend. She bent down and lifted Lilly's head, meeting her for a volcanic kiss. "Congratulations, Lilly Bear," Miley said as she looked into her wife's eyes, glimmering a heavenly shade of blue at that very moment. "I told you that you could do it, sweetheart. I believed in you."

Lilly started to pull Miley down for another kiss when Jen's voice piped up again.

"_Oh, gee, Jen, did 'Above and Beyond' get nominated for any other Academy Awards? Oh, well yes, Jen, it did! Let's see, nominated for Best Picture—that's a big one—and Best Screenplay, and Best Director, too. Hey, there's one more nomination. How about... Hannah Montana, nominated for Best Original Song In a Movie? How the hell does _that _sound?"_

Now it was Miley's turn to feel lightheaded. Lilly instantly grabbed her wife, easing her down to the side and fanning her face as cool sweat beaded up on her forehead and neck. "C'mon, Miles, remember what you just told me, baby. Just breathe."

"_Did she pass out?"_

"Kinda," Lilly said. "Trying to wake her up now."

"_Then I'll let you two celebrate. And seriously, Lilly, congratulations. For your first starring role, just getting an Oscar nomination is amazing. For Hannah, too."_ There was a long pause before Jen added, _"I'm proud of you two. And I'm proud to call you not just my bosses, but my friends."_

"Thanks for everything you do for us, Jen. You're really an awesome manager, and we both feel that way."

"_Merry Christmas to both of you."_ Lilly could hear a distinct sniffle across the phone line before Jen said, _"Okay, time for me to go. See you in a week or two."_

"Merry Christmas," said Lilly, with Miley gathering her wits enough to join in and say, "Yeah, Merry Christmas, Jen!" before the call ended.

The two of them stared at each other for lingering seconds before finally succumbing to the joyful madness of bouncing up and down on the bed, laughing and clapping in celebration before curling up and drifting away into the sweet bliss of a Christmas afternoon nap, warm and safe in each other's arms.

**Author's Afterword:** Yeah, that was a long one. Now you see why it took so long to get this chapter finished. I'll start working on the next chapter soon, I promise. I do love seeing the theories that people have about Mikayla, and I'm sure this chapter will add to them in some way. I promise, her whole story will come to light, just not all at once. After all, working your way through a puzzle is at least half the fun. Just ask Luanne. See you next time!

-- Jo --


	16. Chapter 16: Being Supergirl

**Author's Note:** Thanks for returning for another chapter! I want to take a minute to respond to two recent reviews. First, **brokenvoice**, thank you for the extremely nice comments. I'm tickled that you've been here from the beginning, and I hope to keep you hooked for many stories to come. From the start I wanted to use my stories to spread the message that love is wonderful and powerful and should be not only accepted but encouraged. Your words tell me that my goals are still coming through loud and clear! Next, **not quite invisible**, you have nothing to feel like a jerk about! You asked a fair question, and I'm certainly not offended for you asking. I don't normally use a beta for several reasons. I _do_ proof my own work at least twice, and I try for three times before posting a chapter if time permits. However, sometimes mistakes occur, which is why I try to immediately re-read a chapter _after_ posting it to try and catch any mistakes. If I do find at least two or three, I revise the chapter and post a corrected version usually within 24 hours. However, I slacked on chapter 15, and I still haven't gotten the revised version up yet. My apologies. I'm very glad you're enjoying the stories, and I always love to hear from readers who have been along since the beginning. Thanks again to everyone reading and enjoying this current story of our heroines, and hope this chapter hits you just right!

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist or publication mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo P.

Chapter 16: Being Supergirl

_I'm super cool, super hot, living like a rock star_

_You think I'm super, you think I'm super_

_On the cover of your magazine, wherever I go they make a scene_

_I'm super super, I'm super duper_

_So you wanna be just like_

_So you wanna be just like_

_Think you wanna be just like me_

_Everybody's watching me_

_Never as easy as it seems_

_To be super super_

_To be super Supergirl_

--Hannah Montana,"Supergirl"

As Miley and Lilly stood on the front porch of what had been Lilly's house for many years, they found themselves oddly nervous. It was December 30th, and they had just gotten back to Malibu the night before, following a restful time in Tennessee with their friends and family.

"Kinda weird, huh?" asked Miley, glancing at her wife of five years and companion for eleven. "I mean, we haven't dropped news like this on them here since, well..."

Lilly eyes sparkled as she turned to meet Miley's sea blue gaze. "Since we told them we were in love?" she asked happily. A soft shiver passed through her body, and she reached to put her arm around Miley as her wife's strong arm wrapped around her shoulders. "That was the best meal I think I ever had here, Miles."

"Yeah, including your mom embarrassing our butts off," Miley added with a wry grin. "Without even knowin' we'd made love just a few hours before, she still called us on it!"

Lilly smirked as she rang the doorbell, using her free hand so she wouldn't have to release Miley. "Yeah, well, Mom is good at finding things like that when you least expect it." She kissed Miley on the cheek. Miley smiled and gently guided Lilly to stand in front of her, turning her back to the door. Lilly didn't need much guidance as she stepped over to stand between Miley and the door, reaching up behind Miley's neck to pull her wife in for a longer kiss. "Anyway," Lilly said a bit breathlessly as their lips pulled apart, "Now I'm not embarrassed about saying something like how much I enjoyed making love to you three times yesterday."

Miley had a bright twinkle in her eyes as she added, "And once this mornin'?"

"And once this mornin'," Lilly replied, doing a fairly good imitation of Miley's Southern accent. "And there might be a round two after lunch," she added as she looked deeply into Miley's eyes. "I think your pregnancy has made me even hornier than it has you, Miles."

"Well, then we better get started and get lunch over with!" said a voice from behind Lilly, making her nearly jump out of her skin. In fact, only Miley's grip on her kept the twenty-two-year-old from leaping off the porch. As Lilly's mother tried not to laugh, her father added, "Don't want to keep our daughter and daughter-in-law waiting!"

Lilly buried her face in Miley's shoulder as Miley laughed her deep, hearty laugh. "Please hide me under a rock," she muttered softly enough that only Miley could hear her.

"You ain't hidin' anywhere, Lilly," said Miley, lifting Lilly's head up and staring into her blue eyes, the irises nearly obscured by the now wide blackness of her pupils, dilated with shock. "And please don't freak out, baby. Your mom and dad know how much we love each other, and they know we make love, too. They _were_ there for our weddings, remember?"

Lilly lifted her head and looked slightly up into her wife's bright blue eyes, burning into her own with intense concern and compassion. "How is it," she softly asked as she ran her fingers into Miley's thick chestnut hair, "that you always know the right thing to say to me?"

Miley smiled and said, "Just lucky, I guess."

"Yeah, right," Lilly snickered as she lifted her lips and kissed the tip of Miley's nose lightly. "More like amazing, if you ask me." Without completely releasing her hold on Miley, Lilly turned enough to face her parents. "You two surprised me, I guess," she said. "I mean, I'm really not embarrassed about kissing Miley in front of you, or sitting in her lap or holding her in my lap."

"Lilly," interrupted her mother, "it's not a matter of being embarrassed, it's a matter of modesty. And we'd be a bit embarrassed ourselves if the two of you started discussing your sexual habits in front of us."

"Well, no chance of that, I don't think," Lilly said, closing her eyes as she let her body snuggle tighter against her true love. "We like to keep that stuff to ourselves."

"Unless it's to embarrass Peyton or Mel," Miley quickly added. "And then it's just enough to make 'em turn red as a radish."

Lilly grinned. "Okay, there are some exceptions," she agreed.

The lunch was marvelous; Meredith's Crazy Chicken was a dinner that Lilly had always loved, and even Miley had developed a taste for it shortly after the two girls had begun dating. Everyone was still working on their first plate except for Lilly, who was well underway on her second, when Phil finally asked the question that he and Meredith had been politely putting off.

"So, what's the big news that you two had to tell us?"

Miley stopped with her fork almost to her mouth. "You want to tell 'em, hon?" she asked Lilly, whose mouth was, predictably, full. "Or you want me to do it?"

Lilly chewed, waving her fork around in a motion that probably meant for Miley to go ahead. Or maybe it meant to wait until she was done chewing. Either way, Miley had already decided which interpretation she favored.

"Well, the incredibly beautiful and equally talented woman who is my wife and your daughter has been nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress," Miley said proudly. "Say hello to Oscar Nominee Lola Montana!" she added with a flourish of her right hand in Lilly's direction.

"What?" asked Phil loudly, jumping to his feet.

"Oh, Lilly!" shouted Meredith, dropping her fork on her plate with a clatter.

"Yup," said Miley, rubbing Lilly's shoulder. "And I couldn't be more proud of my baby, that's for sure."

Lilly finally swallowed her bite of chicken and pasta. "Miley sorta left out that she got nominated too, for Best Original Song in a Movie," she said. "Don't make this all about me, Miles, please. You're just as amazing to me as I am to you."

Meredith stood up and hurried around the table, hugging both Miley and Lilly from behind where they sat together on the bench seat, just as they had done for the last eleven years. "I just—" she started. "I just can't believe it! Even knowing that you two are so successful, this is a tremendous accomplishment!"

"The Academy Awards are gonna be in a few weeks," Miley said, patting Meredith's arm. "You two want to go?"

"How can you get us there without revealing who the two of you really are?" asked Phil, incredulous.

"We can get tickets for family and friends, just not many of them," said Lilly. "And we don't have to specify exactly who we're getting tickets for. Plus Miley's family has tons of stuff to get done back in Tennessee, so it doesn't look like any of them are coming."

"Yeah, Kaela can't make it because she's gonna be busy with her medical school rotation, Ron and Lu are gonna be on the road with Kelly Clarkson for the rest of her tour, and it'd look too suspicious for Peyton and Mel to show back up at another big event with us. As for our friends here, Oliver and Ashley already have that big vacation to Australia booked, and Cassie and Sarah would be a bit... complicated."

Seeing the confusion on her parent's faces, Lilly helpfully added, "Sarah doesn't know about Hannah and Lola. Well, not that we know of."

"Oh, that reminds me!" said Meredith quickly. "I completely forgot to ask you earlier, and now I'm ashamed to even ask because it's so late."

"What is it, Mom?" asked Lilly.

"Well, dear, your aunt Kendra is in town with her children, and I was wondering if there might be some way to get them tickets to the Hannah Montana concert tonight. She said that she had tried to get tickets but they had all sold out by the time she could drive down here." Meredith paused. "You know it's been a hard year for them," she finally said.

Miley felt a cold shiver pass through her body, matching what Lilly had just felt. Lilly's paternal uncle Harrison Truscott had died following a heart attack over the summer, leaving his wife Kendra and their three children. Harry had worked for several years as a chemical engineer in Sacramento, and he had left his family with a substantial amount of money. But no amount of money could replace their father in the eyes of Jennifer, nine, Violet, seven, and Garrett, five. This wouldn't be the first time Miley had seen them, as she had previously met them one Christmas afternoon in Malibu six years ago, but this would be her first time seeing them since Harrison's death. She and Lilly had be unable to attend the funeral due to a concert of Hannah's in New York the same day, but Lilly had made sure to call and talk to her aunt and her nieces and nephew.

Miley and Lilly had felt bad about not being able to be there for the funeral, but Lilly had insisted that Hannah's concert go on as planned. Now they had a chance to do something positive that might brighten that family's spirits. "I think we can make something happen, Meredith," Miley said, looking at Lilly as her best friend nodded.

"Absolutely," added Lilly. "One sec." She stood up, pulling her cell phone from her pocket as she walked out of the kitchen.

"Thank you so much for the lunch, Meredith!" said Miley as she also stood. "You mind if I take your plate for you if you're done?"

"You don't have to do that, Miley," protested Meredith, but that protest didn't stop Miley from taking her mother-in-law's plate.

"I don't mind," replied Miley. "But I think Lilly Senior over here still looks hungry," she added with a grin at Phil. "Think I'll just leave that plate where it is for now, 'til he slows down some. Wanna keep all my fingers, after all." She carried both hers and Meredith's plates to the sink, depositing them there before turning around and yawning, stretching as she did so.

"Look how cute her little belly is, Phil!" said Meredith happily as she beamed at Miley.

"Little?" said Miley as she finished her quite wonderful yawn. "This hoss girl don't feel too little to me, and we're just halfway there!" she said, but the secretive smile on her face indicated how happy she truly felt.

"Hush, Miley," said Meredith lightly, dismissing her daughter-in-law's protest with a wave of her hand. "I can barely even tell you're pregnant! You carry our grandchild very well, I must say. And with the two of you as her mothers, she's going to be absolutely adorable."

Miley looked down at her abdomen and rubbed it softly. "I just want her to come out safe and healthy," she said seriously. "And to stay that way."

"She's going to have eyes like the spring sky and the voice of an angel," said Lilly as she came back into the room. "Just like her momma."

"But she's gonna have your hair, hon," said Miley, taking her wife's hand as she stood beside her at the sink. "You get ahold of Jen?"

"Yep," said Lilly with a happy smile. "She's getting the tickets now, and I asked her to bring them by here. I gave her directions on how to get here." She looked at her parents and quickly added, "Hope you two don't mind. If she swears any while she's here, just try to ignore her."

"Who's this that'll bringing the tickets by?" asked Phil, carrying his own plate to the sink.

"Our manager Jen Kittrell," said Miley. "She's really awesome, but she has a bit of a potty mouth. We don't let her swear around the baby."

Lilly gave her mother a guilty look. "So she sort of makes up for it when we're not around. And we need to head home and start getting ready. So don't let her cuss too much around you!"

Miley and Lilly stood and walked to the door, with Meredith and Phil following them. "So have you two seen the movie yet?" asked Lilly, a bit nervously.

"Of course," said Meredith, although she did blush slightly. "Although we did think the love scenes were a bit, um... intense."

"TMI, Meredith?" asked Miley with a light-hearted laugh. When no reply was forthcoming, Miley explained, "That's short for 'too much information', case you'd didn't know."

"Oh! Yes, that would be a good way to put it," said Meredith, Phil nodding affirmatively in the background.

"You two are very attractive young ladies, but knowing that it's our two daughters making love on the big screen does make it a bit uncomfortable to watch," added Phil.

"Just be glad it was Miley and not some sweaty guy like they wanted it to be originally," grumbled Lilly. "But it worked out pretty darn good, I have to say."

Meredith hesitated as the four of them walked out onto the small porch. "I've always wondered this, and now I have a chance to ask this question to someone who knows the answer."

"What is it, Mom?" replied Lilly as Miley reached across Lilly's waist and stealthily slid her right hand into Lilly's right rear pocket of her pants.

"Well, those love scenes in movies..." Meredith began. She glanced away, then she looked squarely into her daughter's eyes with an unsettling intensity. "Did you two really make love when filming that scene, or was it just very good acting?"

Truthfully, neither Lilly nor Miley had been expecting that question. "Well, we can only answer for ourselves," said Lilly, "but we didn't go all the way while filming those scenes for the movie."

"Just about eighty percent of the way," added Miley, drawing a light smack on her arm from Lilly.

"Miley!" she hissed. "You don't have to give them a breakdown, sweetheart!" She turned to regard her parents again and said, "Hey, when I'm in bed with my gorgeous wife and we're both naked, it's hard to resist!"

"So you two _were_ both in the nude..." said Meredith.

Both Miley and Lilly nodded. "We walked to the bed wrapped up in this big ol' sheet," said Miley cheerily. "We've walked around wrapped up like that before, so it wasn't that big a deal for us as long as _everybody_ wasn't lookin' at us in our birthday suits."

Meredith was still focused as she asked, "So how did you keep yourselves covered while filming those scenes? I remember from when you two lived with us that you can get a bit, shall we say, overboard while being intimate with each other."

Now it was Miley's and Lilly's turn to blush slightly. "Well, we, uh..." stammered Lilly.

Miley saved her wife by quickly saying, "Well, the first scenes we shot for the movie were a _lot_ more tame than what you saw up on that movie screen. After seein' the first scenes, the director wanted to reshoot 'em, because she didn't think we showed enough—"

"Sex," interjected Lilly with a smirk. "She thought we were holding back, and we were, because we didn't want to show everything we had to millions of people. So when they called us back for a reshoot, we were even _more_ nervous then we were the first time. But by that time we had hired Jen as our manager, so she went with us."

Miley said, "When we first filmed those scenes, Lilly and I were worried about gettin' so into each other that we'd forget where we were and give everybody a porno scene. Like we were talkin' about earlier, it's not a matter of bein' embarrassed, it's a matter of modesty. Seeing me naked and all hot 'n bothered is for my Lilly and _only_ my Lilly."

"And seeing me like that is only for Miley," added Lilly with a confident smile. "But we talked to Jen about things, and she said that she'd take care of things if we started to get so into each other that we started to show more than we were comfortable with. So the reshoots went a lot better, because Miles and I could relax knowing Jen was there looking out for us. And when we relaxed, we let ourselves just... be ourselves, I guess. And when we started kicking covers off so we could—"

"TMI, I think, dear," said Meredith quickly.

"Sorry," said Lilly a bit sheepishly. "Anyway, Jen ran everybody off when things went past what we had decided would be our comfort level."

"Hey, you remember the time she caught that one guy who had left his camera on?" asked Miley, looking at her wife with a smile.

"Oh my gosh! I had _totally_ forgotten about that!" said Lilly with her voice just slightly higher in pitch. She turned back to her parents and said, "She came back in and saw that one of the cameras was running while we were sitting back up and wrapping the sheets around us again so we could go back to our dressing room, and she went _off!"_

Miley was grinning now as she picked up the story. "She kicked the camera's legs out from under it and knocked it down! Scared us both _to death!_ By the time somebody else could get in there, she had pulled out the portable hard drive, then she made them erase all the footage on that one camera!"

"She sat down with the director and the producers and the hard drive and made them erase all the stuff that wasn't supposed to be there, too," added Lilly. "And she cussed them out a few times, I think."

"Did they fire the jerk who tried to record you two that way?" asked Phil, quite angry at someone trying to take advantage of his daughter and daughter-in-law.

Miley and Lilly both laughed loudly, shaking for a few seconds in mirth. Miley recovered long enough to say, "Nah, Jen just got his address and his license plate number," said Miley. "She said that if he ever pulled anything like that again, she'd come to his house, tell his wife what he had tried to do, beat the hell out of him and then let his _wife_ beat the hell out of him."

"Didn't she say something about buying a puppy for each of his kids, too?" asked Lilly to Miley.

"Yeah, and that they were all gonna be those little yip dogs that bark all the dang time!" Miley couldn't help but laugh as she looked back at her in-laws. "Needless to say, he behaved after that."

Lilly patted Miley's shoulder. "We need to get back to the house, hon. Hannah and Lola need some time to get ready." Lilly turned and hugged each of her parents. "Love you, Mom, Dad. Thanks for the lunch and for the talk."

"Yeah, thanks much, and hope we can see you two tonight," Miley added, not taking her hand out of the rear pocket of Lilly's jeans.

"Oh, I don't think we'll be going," said Phil. "I expect that Garrett won't find the same appeal that his sisters will in Hannah Montana. But thanks anyway, Miley." He hugged his daughter-in-law warmly. "Don't work too hard tonight, okay?" he asked.

"Miley's always really careful with the baby," Lilly quickly said. "She changed the choreography last month to cut down on how much dancing she has to do until the baby's here."

"Cut down on some of the more sexy numbers, too," said Miley. "I don't feel too sexy with this belly."

"Oh, stop it," said Lilly with a smile. "_You,_ Mrs. Miley Truscott, grow sexier to me every day of our lives, and don't even try to argue with me, you got it?"

Miley looked back at Meredith and Phil. "Was she this stubborn growin' up?" she asked playfully.

"Oh yes," said Phil, with Meredith nodding. "And you made her worse."

"_ME?_" said Miley right before she caught the hint of a joke in her father-in-law's eye. "Watch it, buster," she said with a smile and laugh. Still smiling, she turned to her mother-in-law. "We'll show those little girls a good time tonight, Meredith, we promise," she said as she hugged Meredith warmly.

"I know you will, Miley," replied Meredith. "You and Lilly have such big hearts, and they've only gotten more caring since you found each other. We're proud of you both, and not just for what you've accomplished in life. We're proud for the young women you've grown up to be." She winked at her daughter, then she added, "Have fun tonight, girls."

Six hours later, the Hannah Montana concert was just about to start in Los Angeles. Lilly was watching Miley get into position to start the concert when someone tapped her on the shoulder. She turned to see Roxy giving her a look of amusement. "Hey Roxy," Lilly said. "What's up?"

"Oh, just got some special VIPs here to meet you, Miss Lola," replied the bodyguard. She moved to the side to reveal the starstruck faces of little Jenny and Violet Truscott, VIP backstage passes dangling around their necks.

"Well, hi there!" said Lilly, smiling as she bent over. She didn't think there was any chance that the girls would recognize her as their cousin, but she still had to be careful not to call them by name or do anything else that might give her away. "I'm Lola," Lilly said, touching herself on the chest, "and who are you?"

"I'm Jenny!" said her cousin. "I'm nine!"

"And I'm seven! My name's Violet Truscott!" added her other cousin.

"Well, it's very nice to meet you!" Lilly said, carefully shaking hands with each little girl. She stood, looking at her aunt Kendra. Sadness had added lines to her face, but currently Lilly could only see joy at how happy her daughters were at being there. "I'm Lola Montana," she said, extending her hand to Kendra.

"Kendra Truscott," her aunt replied, giving her a genuine smile. "I can't thank you enough, Mrs. Montana, for getting my girls not just tickets but also backstage passes!"

"Hannah and I were happy to do what we could, Kendra," Lilly said, hoping she didn't sound too familiar, "and while I love being called Mrs. Montana, it's okay to call me Lola, too." Later she could talk to her aunt about how she was coping, but right now making sure her little cousins had a good time was her highest priority. "Want to go watch Hannah start the show?" she asked the two girls, getting excited grins and claps from both of them. "Come on, I'll take you to where I watch her. It's got the best view in the whole place!"

As Kendra followed her daughters and their host, she was still trying to process how quickly all this had happened. No sooner had they arrived at Phil and Meredith's house than someone had arrived with not only tickets but also backstage passes for the Hannah Montana concert, which had been sold out for weeks. She knew, because she had tried to buy tickets for it to no avail. Phil had told her that Lilly's friend—no, _wife_—Miley was working at Hannah's record company as part of her marketing classes, and that she had managed to acquire the tickets and passes at the last minute. Kendra was planning on repaying the favor somehow, maybe taking them out to dinner while she and the kids were in Malibu. It had been some time since she had seen her niece Lilly, and she had only met Miley once before, several years ago.

Lilly had a terrific time during the concert, even more than usual for one of Hannah's shows. Miley was her usual focused self during the short breaks between songs, but she took the time to smile and say hello to the girls, promising to spend some more time with them once the concert was over. To two of Hannah Montana's biggest fans, just having her smile and say hello to them was thrilling; getting the chance to sit down and talk to her was beyond what either of them could comprehend just yet. Lilly had the crew bring out three director's chairs; each had a different logo, with one bearing the long-standing Hannah Montana logo, one with Lola's personal logo done in the same style, and the third with their joint Hannah and Lola Montana logo. Lilly made sure they were all comfortable in the chairs as she took a drink of her juice. She hadn't yet told them that the chairs were theirs to keep. There would be plenty of time for that later. Lilly herself preferred to stand and watch Miley perform most of the time.

"Aren't you gonna sit, Mrs. Lola?" asked one of Lilly's cousins. Lilly turned and saw it was Jenny, the older of the two girls.

"I like to stand while I'm watching Hannah," Lilly explained with a smile. She turned back to watch Miley as she began singing "Stand Up, Stand Out," giving Lilly a wave as she began the song. "I could stand for hours watching her," Lilly said, almost to herself, but it was quite true. "Sitting makes me restless when she's singing. I just feel like I have to stand up, to get into it, you know?" Lilly turned back around, a mischievous smile on her face. "You thirsty? I can grab some drinks for you if you want."

"Sprite!" yelled Jenny.

"Pink lemonade!" said Violet.

"Girls!" said Kendra, shushing her daughters.

Lilly giggled at how her aunt was worried about Jenny and Violet being too loud at a rock concert. "I don't think they're gonna drown out Hannah's voice, Kendra," she said with a smirk. "Any of you want a snack?"

"Popcorn!"

"M&Ms!"

Lilly smiled again. "I like the way you two think," she said as she ruffled Violet's hair.

After snacks and drinks, Lilly held out her hands for the girls to take as she heard the music for "Life's What You Make It" wind down. "Come on," she said, helping the two girls out of their director's chairs. "Let's get you some of the full concert experience," she said with a knowing grin. "You mind?" she asked Kendra. "You can watch from the side; security won't let anyone get close to them, I promise."

Kendra looked concerned, but she nodded. Their host had been exceptionally sweet so far, and she truly didn't think that Lola would let her daughters get hurt. She followed them as Lola led her girls to the side, stopping to talk to a security guard. He nodded, then turned on a flashlight as he pulled back a thick dark curtain. He used the flashlight to illuminate something that Kendra couldn't see until she saw Lola start to disappear into the ground. Obviously there were some stairs hidden there; she hurried over as the crew member smiled and motioned for her to go on out as well.

As Kendra passed through what felt like two or three layers of thick curtains, she emerged into raucous chaos. A cacophonous wall of voices and cheers made up of twenty thousand girls and women singing, screaming, shouting and occasionally squealing filled the arena as she found herself in the empty section between the main stage and the front rows. One of the security personnel nodded at her before he turned around to once again focus his attention on the crowd. Kendra leaned over, looking for her children before she spotted them far ahead of her.

Lilly's grin was intense as she carefully led the girls toward center stage, staying on the open path between the stage and the mixed wall of humans and metal keeping the crowds away from the stage. Hannah's fans were always well-behaved, but front row could still get rather wild regardless of everyone's dispositions. As they finally reached a spot right at center stage, they saw Hannah walk out onto the walkway just ahead of them.

Miley was currently being bathed in spotlights and the rest of the arena beyond the stage was steeped in blackness, so there was no way she could have seen the trio standing on her right, just beneath the level of the walkway. However, when it came to Lilly, Miley's heart was much more sensitive than her eyes. She stopped and looked down as she continued to sing, smiling as she saw her girlfriend and their two little guests. She motioned for them to join her on stage, prompting cheers from the crowd even though they had no idea whom Hannah Montana was wanting to come up on stage with her.

"You want to go sing with Hannah?" Lilly loudly asked her little cousins over the loud cheers and music, getting nods from two faces frozen in massive smiles. "She's about to start singing 'Rock Star'! You know the words?" Getting two more nods, Lilly lifted up first Jenny, then Violet onto the stage.

As the crowd got a view of Hannah's two small guests, the cheers intensified even further as Miley finished singing "Supergirl." Miley positioned the two girls beside her as she said, "I'd like for everybody here to give a big hands to my two special guests tonight, Jenny and Violet Truscott!" As more whistles and cheers filled the air, the girls couldn't help but blush furiously at the attention. Miley grinned and yelled, "They're gonna help me sing, so I want all of you to help me sing, too! Ya'll know the words to a song called, 'Rock Star'?" She held up the microphone, capturing the roar of all the answering cries. "Then let's hit it!" she said as she signaled the band to start playing.

Lilly reached up to wipe a tear from her eyes before it could smear her Lola makeup. Watching Miley kneel down and hold the microphone for Jenny and Violet to sing with her, she couldn't help but wonder if one day the two little girls on stage with Hannah would be their daughters sneaking onto the stage with their mother, adding their voices to the song being sung. _Maybe they will._ She turned toward the crowd to get a better view, standing on her tip toes as she did so. Suddenly she heard Lola's name being shouted from just a few feet away. _Looks like someone spotted me,_ she thought. She gamely turned and waved, flashing a smile at what appeared to be a dozen teenage girls reaching out for her. "You having a good time tonight?" she yelled to them, knowing her voice would barely be heard this close to the speakers on the main stage. As the girls nodded and shouted their affirmative replies, Lilly reached out and shook their hands, bravely bearing the death grip squeezes several of the girls gave her. It had taken her some time to get used to "being a rock star," as she termed it when talking to Miley, but she had finally done so after years of adjusting.

One of the girls screamed out, "_I love you, Lola! Will you give me a kiss?!_" while another yelled, "_You're so fucking hot, Lola! Make love to me!_"

Lilly smiled. It had taken time to get used to requests like those, too, but answering them had always been easy. "Sorry," she yelled back with a friendly smile, "but I'm a one-woman kind of girl, and my heart belongs to that woman up there on stage!" _Along with my body, my spirit, my happiness and my soul._ "Enjoy the show!" she said, waving her goodbye as Miley came back to the edge of the walkway with her two guest singers.

Lilly stepped away from the front row as she reached up and helped the two girls down from the stage. "So what did you think?" she asked with a knowing smile as the two girls waved up to Hannah, who had started "Fallen Angel" by now, blowing a kiss to Lilly as the song began.

"That was awesome!" yelled Jenny, her grin fixed firmly on her face.

"Yeah, yeah!" echoed Violet. "That was way cool!"

Lilly grinned at their reactions. _They'll be walking on air the rest of the night... and probably most of the next day, too._ "Come on, let's get backstage so we can catch Hannah when she takes a break to get a drink. She likes for me to be there, so she can sneak a quick kiss while changing clothes."

"Okay!" said Violet, taking Lilly's hand as Jenny did the same. They carefully retraced their path, being careful to not trip over the multitude of wires taped to the floor as they made their way back to the stairs leading up to the curtain. Lilly smiled at Kendra as she helped the girls up the stairs, then she motioned for Kendra to go on ahead of her. She turned and took one look back at her wife, who was already looking her way. As Lilly waved, Miley blew her another kiss, drawing more cheers from the crowd who could guess what the gesture meant. "That's _my_ rock star," Lilly said proudly and more than a bit possessively to herself as she used her hands to part the curtain and climbed the stairs back to the wings.

After the afore-mentioned drink and kiss break, Miley changed clothes and went back out for the last scheduled part of the concert. After that was complete, she returned for two encores, performing two more songs for each encore as the crowd continued to lustily cheer for her. When the concert was finally over she was thoroughly drained, but she refused to let any of that fatigue show as she waved goodbye to her fans and thanked them for coming out to see her.

Backstage, Lilly could see how tired Miley was in her body language. Part of her was beginning to wonder if having her cousins backstage was such a bright idea, but she knew that Miley would have insisted on them being there even if Lilly had expressed any concerns. _Well, at least she can sit down and relax in the dressing room._ "Come on," Lilly said to their three guests. "Let's head back to the dressing room. Sometimes it takes a few minutes for Hannah to get there." Lilly peered around until she saw Roxy; she motioned for the bodyguard to get Miley and bring her on back to the dressing room. Roxy nodded and immediately moved to retrieve the tired superstar. _You rock, Roxy._

Violet and Jenny were still running around the dressing room, examining everything they could find when Miley came through the door. Without a word Lilly immediately made her way across the room, wrapping Miley up in her strong arms as the singer sighed happily. "I can relax now," Miley said. "I'm safe in your arms, baby."

Lilly felt her heart skip a beat at the simple and unexpected admission. "C'mon," she said softly. "Let's get you over to the couch and off your feet. You need to rest for a bit." She helped Miley stretch out on the couch, fluffing a poofy yellow pillow for her to recline on. Lilly bent over and kissed Miley on her sweaty forehead. "I'll get you a washcloth for your sweaty face," she said with a smirk.

"You love my sweaty face!" said Miley over her shoulder as Lilly walked to the bathroom.

"Why do you think I'm getting the washcloth for you?" Lilly replied in a playful sing-song voice as she went into the bathroom.

Miley opened her eyes to find two sets of eyes staring at her from just about a foot away. "Hey girls," she said, putting as much energy into her voice as she could. "You have a good time tonight?"

"We had _the best_ time!" said Violet, quite serious and speaking as if she were several years older than her seven years.

Miley's reply was cut off by the soothing sensation of a cool washcloth caressing her forehead, carefully removing the hot, sticky perspiration and leaving behind a refreshing tingle as Lilly washed her forehead and face. "Thanks, hon," Miley said, looking up and giving her wife a heartfelt smile of appreciation.

"You're welcome, sweetheart," said Lilly as she leaned over Miley and gave her another kiss on her forehead, this one lingering a bit longer.

Miley sat up, adjusting the pillow to keep it behind her head and neck. Lilly quickly scooted a settee over for her to sit on while she lifted Miley's legs, propping her wife's feet up on her lap so she could start taking off Miley's boots. "I get this special treatment because I'm pregnant," Miley said to the girls, as if sharing a secret. Their giggling made Miley grin, something that didn't go unnoticed by her wife.

"No," Lilly said as she tossed one boot to the floor, "you get this special treatment because I love you." As she tugged on the second boot, she added, "And love makes us do crazy things," giving Miley a wink as she yanked the boot off and tossed it on the floor with its mate.

"Amen to that," said Miley softly, giving Lilly a warm, honest smile that conveyed how much she adored and appreciated everything Lilly did for her. She wiggled her toes in their sheer black stockings, reveling in how cool the air-conditioned air of the dressing room felt. "So," she began, looking at the two girls, "how are you two doing with everything that's happened?"

No clarification was needed for anyone in the room. The mood in the room became more somber as Jenny and Violet's smiles faded slightly. "I miss my daddy," said Violet, and the simple ache in that small voice struck clear to Miley's and Lilly's hearts.

"I know you do, sweetie," Miley said as she put her arms around both girls.

"I miss him, too," added Jenny. "I wish he was still here." Kendra sat down behind Violet, resting her hands on her younger daughter's shoulders.

As Lilly saw the tears begin to creep down her cousins' faces, she struggled to keep her own tears in check. She wasn't sure how much longer she could do so, but that wasn't important at the moment. She got up and walked over to the couch, sitting down behind Jenny. "What you have to remember is that your daddy is here in your hearts," Lilly said as she looked at each girl and then her aunt in turn. "And as long as you remember that, you'll always have part of him with you."

Miley took a deep breath, then she said, "I don't know if you two know this, but I wasn't much older than you were when I lost my momma. It took me a long time to get over that, and even today it still hurts some for her to be gone. But sometimes I can see her in the way the sunlight falls on a summer morning, or hear her voice on the wind as it's blowin' through the trees. And then I know that she's never gone completely, not as long as she's in mine and Lola's hearts."

"Does that make it stop hurting?" asked Jenny through her tears, her quiet voice making cold chills run across both Lilly and Miley.

"It makes it hurt less," said Miley carefully, not wanting to lie to them. "But you can make it, and you can grow up to be the big, strong girls that your daddy wants you to be." Her own tears were coming freely at this point, and she didn't try to fight them as she felt Lilly carefully lean in, trying to hug as much of them as she could get her arms around. "Sometimes it's okay for even big girls to cry," she said as all five of them in the room did just that.

**Author's Afterword:** If I caught you off guard with the seemingly abrupt transition back to Malibu, my apologies, but that's where the story is taking us. You haven't seen the last of Amy and Dee in this story, though, as the two of them will be making a trip out to California before long. But before all that, we have the Academy Awards, the next step of Mikayla's attack on Hannah and Lola, and a little game called the Super Bowl. Will all of that fit into the next chapter? I sure hope so! Plus, each chapter brings us closer to the REAL big event: the arrival of a certain baby girl, whose birth will warrant an entire chapter dedicated to that life-changing occasion. Lots more to come, and I'll do my best to keep up a good pace on new chapters. See you soon!

-- Jo --


	17. Chapter 17: Destiny Is Calling

**Author's Note:** Welcome back! This chapter picks up about one month after the previous chapter ended, so it's now the end of January. It's time for the Academy Awards, so enjoy this chapter as a pleasant moment of celebration for Miley and Lilly. I promise we'll get back to the scheming and drama quite soon, but I wanted this night to be one that Miley and Lilly could enjoy completely. They've earned it, after all. For those of you outside the United States or unfamiliar with the Academy Awards, those awards are awarded annually to the best in movies in America. It's hard to compare awards across different subjects, but the Academy Awards (or Oscars, as they're affectionately called) are considered by many the most prestigious American awards presented for performing arts. Oscar winners and, to a lesser note, even Oscar nominees are granted tremendous respect in the film industry, with a win capable of launching an actor or actress's career into the upper realms of celebrity.

I want to welcome back **Elodie Wolfe** and **BrownandBlueEyes**, both of whom have just recently returned and caught back up on this story. We missed you and are thrilled to have you back! And Babe, thank you for the birthday wishes and for your lovely reviews! Thanks to everyone who's reading along, and I hope you enjoy this chapter.

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist or publication mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo P.

Chapter 17: Destiny Is Calling

_Jealousy_

_Turning saints into the sea_

_Swimming through sick lullabies_

_Choking on your alibis_

_But it's just the price I pay_

_Destiny is calling_

_Open up my eager eyes_

_'Cause I'm Mrs. Brightside_

--Hannah Montana,"Mrs. Brightside" (her cover of the Killers' "Mr. Brightside")

As the limousine patiently waited in line to ferry its occupants to the red carpet, the two young women sitting in its back seat found themselves oddly nervous.

"Calm down, honey," said Miley, trying to soothe Lilly's jangling nerves as much as possible. She leaned over and kissed her wife on the cheek, lingering close enough to smell Lilly's scent of oranges from her shampoo. Granted, her real hair was hidden beneath Lola's new soft pink wig, but at this distance Miley could take in every subtle clue when it came to her best friend. "You look beautiful and you're going to do great. Plus you know I love you whether you win or not."

"That's not it, Miles," said Lilly with a soft sigh. She turned and gave Miley an honest smile, then she closed the few millimeters between their lips, letting the kiss linger for several seconds. "Just, this is the biggest night of Lola's life second to marrying you, and I can't even sit with my parents." As Miley pulled away from their kiss, Lilly glanced ahead, seeing that there were still several nearly identical limousines lined up ahead of them. She could feel Miley's sudden anxiety beating in her own chest, and that made her even more apprehensive. "What is it, honey?" Lilly asked. She had to know what Miley had just thought of, what it was that had filled her best friend with abrupt concern.

Miley took her own glance down the road ahead of them, performing a mental estimate of their arrival time just as Lilly had done seconds earlier. When she looked back into Lilly's blue eyes, Lilly could see not exactly fear but something resembling uncertainty in her wife's eyes. "I'm going to ask you something," Miley said in a soft voice just above a whisper. "And I want you to be really honest with me, okay?"

_Well, that was an odd request._ Lilly nodded. "Of course I'll be honest with you, Hannah," she said, slightly puzzled. "Why wouldn't I be?"

Miley smiled. "If you were tryin' to not say something that might bother me," she said. "And it wouldn't be you being dishonest, because I know you wouldn't ever be dishonest to me, it'd just be more like you were tryin' to keep from hurtin' me."

Lilly smiled that soft, loving smile that she saved for Miley and only Miley. "Okay, I promise not to do that," she said. "What is it that's on your mind, hon?"

Miley stared into Lilly's eyes for long seconds, long enough to make Lilly's concern grow. Finally she opened her soft lips and softly asked, "Do you want your parents to sit with us?"

Lilly opened her mouth to reply when the meaning of Miley's words fully settled upon her, freezing the words in her throat. _She's not asking what it sounds like she is. No way._ But as she gazed deeply into those crystal blue eyes that reflected only love and concern back to her, Lilly realized that was _exactly_ what Miley was asking.

As Miley breathlessly waited for her wife's reply, her mind raced through the possible outcomes that could follow Lilly's reply. While many of those possible outcomes filled her with apprehension, even fear, she bravely tamped down those fears. As long as she had Lilly, the two of them could weather anything, any possible crisis or complication, even ones that might result from revealing their true identities to the world. It was that knowledge that gave Miley the strength to bravely wait for Lilly's answer, regardless of what that answer might be.

"No," Lilly said, shaking her head softly to match her low voice. She stared into her best friend's eyes as she took her hands in her own and held them firmly. "I love our lives too much the way they are, sweetheart, and I don't want to risk losing our lives out of the spotlight just because I'm feeling sorry for myself that I can't sit with my parents tonight." She smiled. "I think Mom and Dad will be fine by themselves," she said, "because I'm great with sitting with no one but you."

Miley's heart flooded with relief at her best friend's words. "Okay," she said, exerting all her willpower to control her expression before she realized that Lilly probably already knew what she was feeling inside. "Could you—"

"Feel that you were scared to death of what I might say?" asked Lilly, a twinkle in her eyes that made Miley smile before her brain could even finish registering it. "Yeah, I could feel it. Just a teensy bit." She smiled, making Miley laugh.

"Sorry," Miley said. "I just want you to have whatever you want tonight, no matter what. Even if that means telling people who we really are so they can realize just how amazing you are. The _real_ you."

Lilly smiled again as she released one of Miley's hands, lifting her fingers to Miley's face and gently cupping her best friend's cheek. "This _is_ the real me, honey," she said. "It's not what I wear or what color my hair is that makes me real, Miley," she whispered. "It's the fact that I'm sitting next to you."

Miley felt tears immediately flood her eyes at Lilly's heartfelt honesty. She threw her arms around her best friend's neck, hugging her tightly as Lilly did the same. "I love you so much," said Miley, struggling to not sob as she spoke. "I'd do anything for you, baby, with no regrets," she said, starkly confessing just how much hold Lilly had over her heart.

Lilly nodded imperceptibly, her head held firmly against Miley's. "I know you would, sweetheart, just like I would for you," she replied. "But I think we're doing things the right way, not just for us but also for our families." Lilly allowed herself to smile indulgently as she slowly added, "And for our children."

"Amen to that," said Miley, closing her eyes as she turned her perception inward, focusing on the young life growing inside her, a constant reminder of their love for each other. "And I'm sorry for havin' a little freakout there."

Lilly relaxed her grip on Miley enough for them to once again look into each other's eyes. "It's okay," she said, letting her voice go back to its normal volume. "I've been sort of having my own little freakout all day."

Miley grinned. "Sorta hard to believe we're really here, huh?" she asked, feeling the same way herself. When Lilly nodded her agreement, Miley smiled, lightly biting one side of her lip as she thought. "You know what I did the last time I felt somethin' was too good to be true, Lola?" she asked. After a few seconds, Miley leaned in and said, "I just closed my eyes and thanked God for giving you to me."

"Awww," said Lilly, "my little romantic country girl!" She smiled as the limo came to yet another halting stop. However, this time the door opened up, letting the evening sunlight spill into the rear of the limousine as shouts and camera flashes began washing across the two young women. "Looks like we're here, huh?" Lilly said with a smug grin.

"Yep," replied Miley. "You want to get out first, since you're closer?"

Lilly turned and scooted to the door, being careful to not point her legs in a way that would let any high-resolution cameras sneak any peek-a-boo shots up her short skirt. "I'll get out first because I don't think anyone on earth could follow you in your outfit and _not_ look ugly by comparison," she said with a knowing smile.

"Yeah, right," muttered Miley. "Well, at least I like my view," she added as she tugged down the rear of her wife's shimmering skirt, smiling dreamily as she took an up-close look at her wife's rear and her tan panties.

As Lilly stood, she took in the vast depth of the field of cameras and reporters, all yelling Lola's name and snapping pictures as fast as possible. Lilly took a moment to make sure her dress wasn't bunched up anyway, checking her shoes last. For tonight she had elected to tone down Lola's image of contrasting articles of clothing, going so far as to order a new wig in a soft pink hue. Her dress was a nearly backless one-of-a-kind piece, designed by Kylee Dean two weeks ago. Its shimmering soft golden fabric looked like satin at a distance, but up close it could be seen that it was a blend of several different fabrics, giving it feel and movement very similar to brushed silk. The top tied around Lilly's neck, covering her front completely but daring to leave a significant amount of her ribs and all of her back and strong shoulders on display. They had used double-sided tape to securely fasten the sides of the dress to Lilly's chest at certain points to prevent revealing too much of Lilly's chest, but the tantalizingly short hem of her skirt was also in competition for everyone's eyes. It fell to just below the middle of Lilly's thighs, showing off her amazing legs all the way down to the strappy golden Stella Fabiani heeled sandals that rounded out her outfit.

Miley was spellbound as she gazed adoringly at Lilly's muscular legs, the neatly cut edges of her lower quadriceps and calves standing out quite clearly in the late evening sun. "She's amazing," she whispered to herself as the golden sun made Lilly shine in its presence. Miley herself carefully eased out of the limousine, taking the same precautions as Lilly.

The sudden increase in frequency of the camera flashes along with the sudden shouts of "Hannah! Hannah!" made Lilly turn to look at her wife. She started to hurry and help Miley out of the car, but that was arrested by two factors. First, Miley had already gotten to her feet and was out of the limousine before Lilly could have helped her. Second, Lilly was completely enthralled by how her wife looked.

If the evening California sun made Lilly glow, it made Miley in her brilliant white outfit shine. Her evening gown was another Kylee Dean original, all pure white silk falling over her body. Its length was more along the lines of a cocktail dress, and it was, Lilly thought, quite reminiscent of ancient Greek gowns and robes. She wasn't sure if it had been conceived that way, but it certainly had come together into a stunning dress. The fabric was gathered at each of Miley's shoulders, bunched into soft, wide straps as it crossed those elegant shoulders. The top of the dress's front fell loose down to Miley's sternum, showing off the tops of her breasts, slightly larger than usual due to the progressing pregnancy. The loose material downplayed Miley's slowly growing abdomen, but a sash of the same bright white fabric gathered the dress in at her hips, giving a clear indication of her firm rear and shapely hips. The dress's hem fell at the top of Miley's knees, and while her legs weren't quite as muscular as Lilly's athletic ones, they were still lean, toned and well-defined. Her shoes were silvery-white Stella Fabiani heels, which Miley had fallen for as soon as she had laid eyes upon them. Completing the captivating image were Miley's healthy tan and Hannah's blonde hair, making her look even more vivacious and alive than usual for Hannah—and that was saying quite a bit.

_She looks like an angel more than I've ever seen her,_ thought Lilly._ So beautiful, so happy, so... pure._ Lilly smiled. _So in love. Just like I'm in love with her._ She reached out and took Miley's hand. "You look amazing," Lilly said with a proud smile. "I am by far the luckiest person here, because I have the most gorgeous wife on the planet."

"You got competition," said Miley with a straight face.

"Who?" asked Lilly, surprised.

Miley smiled as she said, "Me."

"Equally lucky, then?" Lilly asked with a knowing smile.

"Equally lucky," agreed Miley as she and her bride began their leisurely walk along the red carpet, altogether oblivious to the cascade of camera flashes as they held hands and unconsciously kept their bodies touching in some way at all times.

After nearly an hour of walking the gauntlet of reporters, television hosts, and celebrity interviewers, they finally arrived at the entrance to the Academy Awards ceremony. After checking in with security, they were escorted to their assigned seats at the front of the auditorium, in the area reserved for award nominees. Hannah was also going to be performing tonight, singing her song "I'll Always See Your Smile," nominated for Best Original Song in a Motion Picture, from "Above and Beyond." Taking both their status as dual nominees and Hannah's being a performer into account meant that the Montanas were going to be sitting at the very front of the auditorium, something Miley deeply appreciated since she was almost twenty-four weeks pregnant.

As Lilly helped Miley sit down, she drew a few good-natured laughs at her fussing over keeping Miley's dress smooth as her wife took her seat. Once Miley was seated, Lilly promptly plopped down into her own seat, crossing her legs as she tugged the bottom of her skirt down slightly. "I think Kylee went a bit too short on this skirt," she grumbled to Miley, keeping her voice low.

Miley took a long look at Lilly's thighs on display just inches away, letting her gaze travel on down across Lilly's knees and slowly traverse the rest of her legs. "Looks pretty dang good from where I'm sittin'," she said softly, getting a playful poke in the ribs from Lilly.

"What did you say Kylee did before she got into designing dresses?" asked Lilly.

Miley winced, a gesture so subtle as to be imperceptible to anyone except Lilly, who already knew every little nuance, expression and tone of voice that her wife possessed. "She was, um... into acting."

"Like movies or television shows? Or commercials?"

"Yeah."

"Well, which one? Movies, television shows, commercials, what?"

"Uh... movies." Miley began to chew her fingernail, only to have Lilly take her hand in hers, resting them together on Miley's lap.

"You only chew your fingernails when you're nervous or embarrassed, Mrs. Montana," replied Lilly. "What kind of movies?"

Miley looked over at her best friend, then she flashed her best _I'm-too-cute-for-you-to-be-mad-at-me_ smile. "Adult... movies?" she said cheerily, her smile remaining in full force.

"Ah," said Lilly. "That would explain the, shall we say, 'daring' style in several of her pieces?" she asked, already knowing the answer. She let Miley sweat for a few seconds before she smiled and said, "I'm just playing with you, honey. I remembered what she did before; she's never been shy about her previous career. And my gosh, I'm glad she switched into fashion! I mean, the woman can make absolutely _killer_ dresses!"

Miley smiled and rested her head on Lilly's shoulder, Hannah's blonde locks falling over Lilly's right shoulder and arm. "Plus you look amazingly sexy in her stuff," Miley admitted. "Some of her dresses I _swear_ are designed just for you."

"Thank you," said Lilly happily as she gave Miley a kiss on her head. "And you make her stuff look even hotter than it already is too, sexy thing." As the house lights dimmed to indicate the start of the program, Lilly said, "You think we'll make any best- or worst-dressed lists tonight?"

Miley smiled. "You already made mine," she said as she reached over and gently squeezed Lilly's knee with her right hand. "The best-dressed, that is."

The two of them got to watch the first thirty minutes of the program before an attendant came out to escort Miley backstage to prepare for the Best Original Song award presentation. As had been customary for several years, each nominated song would be performed by the artist who had recorded it. The order of the singers had been randomly selected, and the luck of the draw had Hannah singing fourth out of five. The votes had already been cast long before the program had begun, so the order really had no effect whatsoever on who won, easing the tension among all the performers.

As the first three artists performed their numbers, Miley waited quietly on the section of the stage reserved for her, standing atop a raised platform like the other nominees. As the third singer finished, Miley smiled as she waited for her song and name to be announced. She had a few butterflies in her stomach, which was unusual for her, but she focused on one particular pair of blue eyes out in the audience and drew strength from the focus and support she could feel from her partner. Right before the spotlight aimed at her came up, she rubbed her belly lightly, smiling at the young life she could feel inside her. As the spotlight flared to light and her music began, she felt energy circulate through her body; whether it came from her own excitement, from Lilly's love and support or from their baby inside her, she opened herself up to that energy and rode it out as she sang her song, a paean to a love powerful enough to irrevocably change lives and hearts, so strong that not even death itself could sever the bond it had created between two lovers. She sang of shared hopes and dreams between young lovers, of cruel loss and bleak despair wrought by death that came too soon, of inner strength and spirituality that came not from gods or religion but from a simple, steady love that refused to yield no matter the challenge. She sang of a love mighty enough to defy not only death but also life itself, forever changing those touched by it, always for the better. And as her strong, clear voice finally fell silent as the last notes of music ended, she fought back tears as all present rose to their feet, creating a sudden roar of applause and cheers that she could feel as much as hear. She saw Lilly on her feet, tears running down her cheeks as she clapped wildly, her face flushed with emotion that Miley shared as it coursed inside her. Lilly stopped clapping long enough to blow her a kiss; Miley forgot her tears instantly and laughed, returning the gesture without a second thought. She waved her thanks to the crowd, saying "Thank you" even though she knew the microphone would already be turned off in anticipation of the final nominee's performance. Even though it wouldn't be heard, she knew that her gratitude would be seen by the crowd, and that was enough for her.

As the spotlight illuminating her went off, Miley turned, taking the hand of the stagehand who had wheeled the movable staircase to her pedestal. "Thanks," she said pleasantly, brushing away tears with her free hand as she carefully descended the steps, handing the microphone to an attendant waiting at the foot of the stairs. "Hey, can I go back to my seat?" she asked the attendant. While she knew that the performers had been asked to remain backstage until the winner was announced, she was increasingly feeling the need to be in physical contact with Lilly, not so much for her own benefit as for Lilly's. She could feel that her best friend had been moved profoundly by her performance, so much so that Lilly's emotional state was making Miley dizzy. Lilly needed her, and tradition and protocol both paled in comparison to her wife's needs.

Not getting a response from the attendant who simply scurried off, Miley walked in the direction she had previously entered. After two people hurried by her before she could get a word out, she finally grabbed the next person who went by her. "Hey, you've got a pregnant lady here who's needin' to sit down," she said firmly. "Now I can either sit down on the stage out there, or I can sit down in my seat next to my wife. Which one's it gonna be?"

As Miley sat down next to Lilly, Lilly turned to look at her best friend with surprise. "I thought they wanted all of you to stay backstage until the winner was announced?" she asked Miley.

Miley slid over as far as her seat would allow her, putting her arm around Lilly and holding her tightly. "You needed me," she said simply. "So I came."

"Yay," said Lilly softly as she leaned her head against Miley's chest, focusing on the sound of Miley's heart to help clear her mind of the swirling tumult of emotions that had taken up residence. As the final nominee ended her song, Lilly teasingly said, "Now watch, I finally get myself all calmed down, just in time for you to win the Oscar."

The presenters returned to the podium and began fumbling with the envelope containing the winner's name as Miley said, "Oh please, do you really think that it's gonna happen so soo—"

"_HANNAH MONTANA, for 'I'll Always See Your Smile'!"_

"EEEEEEP!" yelled Lilly, clapping as she grabbed Miley and hugged her tightly. Before Miley could even react, Lilly's lips were on hers, then she was melting into her wife's fiery kiss as her own hands went to Lilly's back, pulling her tightly to her. "I told you you'd win!" squealed Lilly as they finally parted for air, with Miley uncharacteristically gasping for breath.

Miley somehow got to her feet as the applause continued, but Lilly had to point her in the right direction to the steps leading up onto the stage.

"Go on, sweetheart," Lilly said. "You've earned it."

"Come with me," Miley said as she stood, tugging on Lilly's hand.

"You have to make this speech by yourself, hon," said Lilly, but she didn't try to pull her hand free of her wife's firm grip. "Now get your cute butt up there! Everybody's waiting!"

Miley bent down and gave Lilly a quick kiss on the lips, then she turned and hustled to the stage, taking care not to move too fast and risk falling in her heels. She climbed the stairs with a spring in her step that seemed to belie her pregnancy, but she did manage to regain her composure and walk to the podium with a bit more poise despite the grin that refused to leave her face.

As she took the golden statuette from the hostess, she turned to face the audience. "Wow! Can you believe it?!" she shouted, holding the Oscar up over her head triumphantly as she looked over the entire auditorium, taking it in as the applause finally faded away. "Well, I didn't exactly have any kinda speech prepared for tonight," she admitted, drawing a few chuckles from the audience, "so let me make sure to thank the Good Lord above for everything He's done for me every step of the way, my momma and daddy for lettin' me chase my dream and talkin' me into hangin' in there when things got tough, um, everyone involved with this terrific movie which I am _immensely_ proud to have been a part of and, finally, the most important person I have to thank." She cast her eyes to Lilly and smiled. "Lola, honey, thank you for being the most loving, caring, understanding, patient wife that this world's ever seen. Thank you for letting me be a part of your life, and thank you for being a part of mine." Miley felt her tears well up, but she swallowed against her burning throat and pressed on. "No, that's not right," she said, shaking her head. "You're not a _part_ of my life, you _are_ my life, and no song could ever say everything that I adore about you. Thank you for always being there for me. I love you, baby." She looked up, not wanting to see Lilly cry more than she already was, and added in a louder voice, "Thank you!" As the applause started again, she waved and turned around, letting the hostess escort her off the stage.

Miley saw one of the production assistants standing just off the stage, checking a watch and a clipboard. She briefly thought about apologizing for making such a long acceptance speech, but then she decided against it. She had promised long ago to never apologize for loving Lilly, and she wasn't going to start now.

As Miley made her way backstage, Lilly tried furiously to slow her tears enough to save Lola's makeup, but it was looking like a losing battle. Someone behind her had been kind enough to offer her a handkerchief, and she used it to hold her ground as she finally got her crying under control. "Ugh, I hate these hormones," she muttered, "and I'm not even the one who's pregnant. _So_ not fair."

When Miley sat down in her seat beside Lilly, she was bouncing up and down with energy. "Hey, look what I got," she said happily.

Lilly looked up and smiled as she saw the shiny gold statuette that her best friend was holding. "Oh my gosh, it looks even cooler up close," she said. "Can I touch it?"

Miley gave her a nonplussed look. "Is that a trick question?" she asked. "I mean, since I've pretty much let you touch anything you want for, oh, seven years now?" She batted her eyes at Lilly, seemingly unaware of the double meaning in her words.

"You weren't complaining any of those other times," replied Lilly smugly. She reached out and took the award, hefting it in her hand. "Wow, it really_ is_ kinda heavy, huh?"

"Yeah," said Miley, her own smile huge. "This one's really mine, too. That one they gave me on stage is just for show. Somebody took it away from me soon as I was behind the curtain."

"And you didn't punch them?"

"Ha ha. No, I didn't punch them. That was what took me so long backstage."

"Well, maybe if you _had_ punched them it would have gone faster."

There was a pause as Miley stared into Lilly's eyes, both young women struggling to keep straight faces. "Maybe I should punch _you_," Miley finally said, trying not to laugh.

Lilly's eyes twinkled in the lights as she fought to still her own lips from quivering with laughter. Finally she said, "Well, if that's some code for, 'Let's go backstage and fool around,' we could probably make that happen." She held her straight face for a further three seconds before it finally imploded, causing both of them to start laughing wildly.

As they brought their laughter under control after several not-so-polite shushes from those around them, Lilly and Miley leaned in against each other. Lilly quietly said, "I'm proud of you, sweetheart," as she gave Miley a brief kiss. She handed her wife's award back to her. "I need to go to the bathroom and try and fix what's left of my makeup."

"Here," said Miley, taking the handkerchief. "Let's get the rest of this off right here," she said, dipping the end of the handkerchief into her glass of water sitting in front of her seat. She carefully removed the rest of Lilly's makeup, ignoring what was going on with the program as she concentrated on her wife. Once the makeup had been removed, Miley reached into her tiny clutch purse and retrieved the lipstick that Lilly was wearing. She carefully touched up her girlfriend's lips, happily saying, "There!" when she was done. "You look awesome, hon."

"Thank you!" replied Lilly happily. "So, how long until I'm up for my award?"

Miley checked the program, then she looked around her until she found someone's watch to check the time on. "Looks like about an hour and a half."

The deflated look that fell across Lilly's face nearly made Miley start laughing again. "Please tell me you're joking," Lilly said softly.

"Could, but it wouldn't be true," said Miley quickly. "Sorry hon."

"Eh, could be worse," said Lilly, shrugging her bare shoulders. She leaned against Miley, resting her head on her wife's shoulder. "At least I have a really cute pillow," she said with a smirk.

Despite the long wait, Miley and Lilly both patiently made the most of their time. Lilly did indeed take a short nap on Miley's shoulder, with Miley only having to tell her to stop snoring once. Once Lilly was awake, she returned the favor by letting Miley take a quick snooze. As Miley rested, Lilly carefully looked at her wife's award, taking in the heft, the shine, the carefully engraved lettering on the base that marked the category, the year, and the winner: _Best Original Song In a Motion Picture 2014, "I'll Always See Your Smile" by Hannah Montana._

_Will I have one of these one day?_ Lilly found herself wondering. _What would it feel like, to earn the same award as Miley? I've never done that, not ever. It would make us equals in a professional sense in one tiny way, and that's something I had always dreamed of._ Lilly looked down at her sleeping wife and felt a thrill pass through her body. _She looks so beautiful, no matter what she does. Heck, I don't think she could ever_ not_ look beautiful, not to me. Even when we're old and broken-down, I'll always see her as the most beautiful creature on earth._

"Most beautiful thing on earth to me, too, Lil..." mumbled Miley, making Lilly first jump in surprise, then freeze as she processed what Miley had whispered in her sleep.

_Ohmygosh. Did she just... _ Lilly looked around first to see if anyone had heard Miley's whisper, then she peered down at her best friend. "Honey?" she whispered, hoping for a response of some sort, but Miley remained silent. "Hon?" She gently poked Miley in the side, getting a sleepy swat at her hand that wasn't even close. _She IS still asleep._ Lilly looked up at the stage, trying to calm her suddenly racing thoughts. _No way. No WAY she just did that. But then... _

She looked down again and saw Miley wrinkle her forehead, as if something was irritating her. She reached up and rubbed her nose, nearly making Lilly snort with laughter. Lilly had always loved the myriad faces Miley could make in her sleep even before they had started dating, and now the comfortable familiarity of looking at her lover's face while she slept stilled some of anxiety that had erupted inside Lilly. She decided that some things didn't need to be dissected or analyzed, regardless of their improbability. Some things just _were_, and that was enough.

"Mmmm," Miley mumbled as she began to stir. She stretched her arms out in front of her in a not-very-subtle way as she smiled, finally opening her eyes.

"That looked like a good stretch," said Lilly softly, trying not to giggle.

"Uh huh," mumbled Miley, covering her mouth as she yawned. "Felt good, too," she said as the yawn passed. "We gettin' close to the big moment?"

"Actually, yeah, it's coming up right after Best Supporting Actor, which is next."

"Cool," said Miley, glancing around. "Hey, gimme back my shiny award," she said playfully.

"Uh uh," countered Lilly, transferring the statuette to her left hand, away from Miley.

Miley stuck out her lip, batting her impossibly sexy eyes at the woman who was powerless against them. "Pwease?" she said in a childish voice.

Lilly narrowed her eyes at her wife, but she knew she was beaten. "Oh, alright," she said, handing the statuette over. "Cheater."

The audience began to applaud. Reflexively Miley and Lilly joined in, Miley dropping her award in her lap to free up both hands. Lilly eyed the award briefly before Miley protectively covered it with her right hand. "I saw that look, woman," Miley said quietly.

"Hmph." Lilly crossed her arms, attempting a fake pout strategy herself, but she still was nowhere near the master that Miley was when it came to that skill. "Well, one day I'll get my own."

Miley's serious face shifted into a warmer one that never failed to make Lilly's stomach do little happy flips deep inside. "Yes, you will," she said as she looked into Lilly's large, loving eyes. "I know it."

As Lola's name was called out as one of the nominees, there was polite applause as a brief clip from the movie was played, drawing their attention to the large screen on the stage. They both shivered at the scene that played, showing Lola's character the morning after burying her lover, looking down at the two children that were her responsibility now and haphazardly wiping at her tears before carefully lying down between them, holding them both as they turned and scooted against their new mother.

"I hated filming that scene," Lilly whispered, and Miley knew that all too well. Lilly had gone to some of her worst nightmares to summon enough sadness, tears and loss for her character in those scenes, and when those scenes were finished she would run to her trailer and call Miley on the phone, crying as she reassured herself that her best friend, her partner, was still alive and well and that her worst fears were just those: fears, not fact.

Miley squeezed Lilly's hand firmly. "It took a lot of courage to go where you had to for those scenes," she said simply. "I don't think I could have done it," she admitted. _And I hope and pray neither of us ever has to experience that for real._

They stopped whispering as they heard the now-familiar phrase, _"And the Oscar goes to..."_

Lilly reached over with her other hand and squeezed Miley's hand tightly as she closed her eyes, unable to watch the presenters haltingly open the elaborate envelope.

"_Lola Montana!"_

The shrieks and cheers throughout the audience were impressive, but all of them fell short of the shocked scream that came out of Lilly's adorable mouth. Miley tried to cover her ears, but Lilly refused to relinquish her wife's hands, resulting in ears that would be ringing the rest of the night. Miley quickly realized what would stop her partner's piercing shriek and leaned in to cover Lilly's mouth with her own. As Lilly registered her wife's lips and tongue on her own, she stopped screaming and began kissing, nearly delirious with surprise. After several seconds of lusty applause, Miley finally pulled away and tugged Lilly to her feet, standing with Lilly. "Go on, honey," said Miley proudly as she extricated her hands from Lilly's python-esque grip and began to carefully applaud. "Go get your Oscar. You deserve it, baby."

Lilly paused, her eyes begging for Miley to come to the stage with her. With her eyes and smile and not a single word, Miley conveyed her proud reply to Lilly: _You earned this yourself, without me. It's time for you to stand as a star, as my equal, on your own talent and dedication._ Lilly smiled, and Miley knew her wife had understood clearly. She watched as Lilly strode to the steps, practically leaping up them in two bounds. As she gleefully took the Oscar and raised it above her head, pumping it in the air, the cheers intensified as Miley stuck her fingers in the corners of her mouth and added her own piercing whistle to the mix of sounds.

As Lilly stepped to the podium, the cheers and applause rapidly died down, leaving the audience in a rather abrupt silence for a few moments as Lilly considered her words. She looked up, away from the golden statuette in her hand and into the crowd. "Wow," she said softly. "I, um, hadn't really come up with a speech, because I didn't think there was a chance that I'd win. My head's still kind of spinning, actually, so I'm not going to take long." Lilly took a deep breath to try and still her thoughts. "My wife saved me for last in her speech, so I'm going to return the favor," she said with a smile and a happy look at Miley where she sat in the audience. Lilly looked around in the audience, but she couldn't see her parents. Still, she knew they were there. "Mom and Dad, thank you so much for giving me life, love, and a home where I could be myself. Because of you, I knew that I'd always have support in anything I did." Lilly wiped away a single tear from the corner of her eye and laughed once. "I don't think I'd ever been so scared in my life as when I brought home my best friend and told you two that we were in love, but you never got mad or yelled, or threatened to throw us out, or said anything other than how happy you were that we had found each other. That's one of the greatest gifts you ever gave me, and I want you to know how much I love and appreciate you for that. Millions of kids never get that acceptance, and it breaks my heart when I hear of a family split over something as essential as love. Thank you for being the best parents ever." As she paused to catch her breath, ringing applause filled the auditorium. Lilly smiled at the sentiment. "I also want to thank Hannah's parents for supporting us and loving me just like their own daughter. While her dad's down here on earth and her mom's watching from Heaven, I want both of them to know that I love them just the same as they love me."

Lilly caught motion from the side of the stage, where a production assistant was trying to get her to hurry along. "Hey, hold your horses, I'm hurryin'!" she said as she turned to look at him, drawing laughter from the audience and making Miley hide her face in her free hand. "Didn't see you trying to rush my wife along," she grumbled into the microphone, drawing even more laughs. She raised her head back up, but this time she only had eyes for one very special person. "Eleven years ago I fell in love with my best friend. I didn't realize it at first because it took some time for that love to grow and bloom, but I did. She's always been there for me even before we realized we were so much more than just friends, and I know in my heart that she's always going to be there for me, just like I'll always be there for her." Lilly clenched her award tightly as she said, "Hannah, I love you with all my heart and soul, and I always will. Thank you for being everything to me... now and forever." She looked back up and waved. "Thank you again, all of you!" she said happily, beaming as the applause once again swept through the large auditorium.

Some time later the chiming of a doorbell echoed through the large house of Oliver and Ashley Oken. "Who the hell is ringing the doorbell at this time of night?" said Ashley, angrily. She looked over at the clock. "Two in the morning! Un-freaking-believable!" She started to shake her husband until he was awake when her phone beeped once. She picked it up off the nightstand and checked the next text message, reading it twice due to the lingering traces of sleep slowing her thoughts.

Ashley stood, slipping on a robe as she hurried out of the bedroom and down the large central stairs. As she reached the door, she peeked out the window in the frosted glass panel, then unlocked and opened the door. "What in the hell are you two doing out at this time of night?" Ashley asked the two young women standing on her front porch. "And _where_ did you get those dresses!" she added, reaching out to touch the fabric of Miley's dress.

"Around," said Miley teasingly.

"Mind if we come in for just a second?" asked Lilly, wearing a golden dress just as stunning as Miley's brilliant white one.

"Sure, sure," said Ashley, carefully looking over the gowns. "I take it someone was at a party tonight?" she asked.

"Sorta," said Lilly teasingly as she shut the door.

"Do I need to wake Oliver?" asked Ashley. "He has to get up in two hours for his shift."

"Nah, we can let him sleep," said Miley. "Just bring him over to the house tomorrow after he gets done so he can see."

Ashley blinked her eyes. "See what?" she asked, confused.

"These," replied Miley with a naughty sparkle in her eye as she reached into a black leather bag and pulled out what looked very much like...

"Is that—" asked Ashley, her throat tightening up. She swallowed against the dryness, choking out, "An... Oscar?"

"No," said Miley as Lilly reached into the bag. "It's two Oscars."

As Lilly produced a second golden statuette, Ashley clapped her hands over her mouth to muffle her scream of delight. She _did_ stomp her feet on the floor where she sat, but the elegant rug muffled much of the noise. "You won? You _both_ won?" she softly cried out. "And that was tonight?"

"Yeah," Miley and Lilly said simultaneously, smiling at each other as they did so. They playfully tapped their Oscars together, like they were making a toast, dissolving into giggling fits as they did so.

Ashley suddenly stood up. "Shit, I think my mom just got out of bed. She must have heard the doorbell."

"Oops," said Lilly bashfully. "Sorry!"

Miley stuffed her Oscar back into the bag, holding it open for Lilly to do the same as the two of them stood. "Bring Oliver over when he gets off work," whispered Miley as she and Lilly hurried to the door.

"Okay," whispered Ashley as she opened the door, letting Miley and Lilly out.

"And get in bed!" said Miley teasingly.

Lilly grinned and added, "Yeah, what kind of nut is up at two in the morning?"

Ashley tried not to laugh as she shook her head and closed the door.

**Author's Afterword:** For those of you thought that Miley had shared her first special dream's details with Lilly—the dream where she saw their two Oscars—she actually didn't. During that dream Lilly's future self told Miley that she never had shared that particular dream with her, telling her instead that she would experience the dream with Miley in the future and that it would be a wonderful dream. So Lilly's winning the Oscar was a complete surprise to her... although not to Miley, who wanted to keep it a secret for two reasons. The first reason is that she simply wanted Lilly to have a wonderful surprise when she won. The second reason is something that has been hinted at but never explicitly stated before: Miley is quite fearful of jinxing her special dreams. She _is_ rather superstitious, after all, and she tends to worry too much at times; if something were to happen that contradicted her glimpses of the future, that would challenge all the joyous events she and Lilly have foreseen in their futures. Because of that, Miley tries not to tempt fate too much.

Sorry it took so long to get this chapter up. I promise to keep working hard on the next one!

-- Jo --


	18. Chapter 18: Bedside Manner

**Author's Note:** Welcome back to the next chapter! Some very nice reviews and comments came through, so let me take a moment to respond to one in particular. **Pieman3**, I love your name! I can promise you that Gina and Jaime will be making a return to our stories soon, probably about two or three chapters from now. I do plan on finishing my Lost and Delirious story "Broken Wings," it's just sitting in my mind waiting for me to find the time to hammer it out. The third chapter will finish the story, and I think everyone who reads it will be quite pleased. And the empathic connection between Miley and Lilly is _supposed_ to be a bit unsettling when viewed in its entirety, simply because it can't be readily explained. It's one of those things that Miley and Lilly have accepted as part of their love for each other, and I assure you I have no intention of making it a central point of the story. It's there as another manifestation of strongly they care for each other and how tightly they're bound together both emotionally and spiritually. For everyone else, thank you for the support and positive comments. I always read every review and truly appreciate what people take the time to say, be it praise, comment, question or criticism. All of them are worthwhile!

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist or publication mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo P.

Chapter 18: Bedside Manner

_Pay my respects to grace and virtue_

_Send my condolences to good_

_Give my regards to soul and romance_

_They always did the best they could_

_And so long to devotion_

_You taught me everything I know_

_Wave goodbye, wish me well_

_You gotta let me go_

The Killers,"Human"

Mikayla angrily slid her car into its parking place outside the dance studio Dyseni had rented for her use. She slammed the Aston Martin Vanquish's gunmetal gray door as she slung her bag across her shoulder. She muttered and cursed under her breath as she hurried to the entrance, ignoring the greeting of the receptionist as she marched into the lobby.

She turned, opening the door leading back to the larger studios. Dyseni had mandated therapy sessions for her weekly, and today's had not gone particularly well. "Fucking bitch," Mikayla swore quietly as she opened the door for her personal locker room, locking the door once she was inside. She quickly stripped off her dress shirt and pants she had worn to her counseling session as well as the meeting with some of the Dyseni executives and Margot just before. She was mad because the suits wanted to release one particular song of hers as the next single, while Margot was arguing to use a different song. Mikayla herself was wanting to use a new song, one she had recently recorded that didn't appear on her most recent album but would be on her next one. Everyone in the board room had told her that wasn't a good idea, but she fucking _wanted_ that song to be her next single. It was the most personal and most painful song she had ever recorded, which quite frankly scared the upper management at Dyseni.

Mikayla pulled on the tight athletic shorts, tugging the sports bra over her head and into position on her chest next. She sat down and began putting on her socks and dancing shoes, still seething at how she had been treated in the meeting. And Margot had been no help whatsoever. They were too concerned about the sad nature of the song dampening Mikayla's image as an upbeat party girl who loved life, which helped sell records more oriented toward dance-flavored music and beats that would be right at home in a nightclub.

_But that's not all I'm about. There's more to me than what people see in the press._ She sighed. _Does Hannah have this problem? Worrying about showing that there's more to her than what the public sees? Shit, what am I saying? She decided to announce to the whole fucking world that she was gay by proposing to her girlfriend on live television when she was just fifteen. There's probably not a damn thing she'd try to keep secret if she had the guts to do that._

Mikayla carefully put her street clothes on hangers and placed them in her oversized locker, closing the door with a metallic clang that continued for several seconds as it vibrated into silence. She grabbed her drink and walked across the locker room to the door leading to the big dance studio. As she walked in she saw several of her dancers practicing, maybe a half dozen of them or more. There were a few people she didn't recognize, but she really didn't care.

"Everybody get the fuck out of here," she said coolly as she strode into the studio, music still playing from the speakers throughout the room. As everyone else came to a stop, the music continued to play. For some reason that particularly annoyed her, because it wasn't what she wanted to listen to right at that moment. "I said _GET OUT!!"_ she screamed, smiling when the room emptied in a mini-stampede. "And lock the fucking doors behind you! I don't want anyone so much as looking in here for the next two hours, you hear me?" she yelled as the last two people ran out the door, stopping only long enough to close and lock the door. She made sure all the blinds and shades to the studio's windows were closed, then she walked over to the room's stereo controls. She ejected the CD, setting it down on the shelf as she opened the case in her hand and slid in the new mix CD she had just burned the night before and cranked the dial most of the way up.

As the sounds of the first song—"Sex Bomb", by the Lords of Acid—filled the room, she turned and stalked her way to the center of the room. She stepped up onto the raised central platform then jumped off, legs extended as the guitars swelled forth. By the time she hit the floor, she had left the current Mikayla and all her rage behind, still stewing there on the platform like a malignant phantom. She suppressed her thoughts, buried her anger and sadness as she let the music carry her body along, turning, jumping, twisting, spinning as she threw herself into her dancing. No practice, no routine, no choreography—this was pure expression, the catharsis needed for the darkness inside her that threatened to overcome all she knew. Dancing in this way had always been one thing that was _hers_, no one else's; Mikayla too often forgot how good it felt to simply let the world outside go and hear nothing but the beat and thrill of the music, letting its rhythm take charge of her body and lead her in a way that felt like flying to the shattered little girl hidden inside her.

She used the entire studio as she danced, flowing from song to song and changing her dance style with each track. She never paused or hesitated until the song "Start All Over" abruptly began to play. As part of her brain recognized her nemesis' song, she froze momentarily before willing herself to continue dancing, moving to this song's tune and words as she told herself that it was just like any other song.

_Why the fuck did I put this song on that CD?_ she thought angrily as she spun, falling to the floor as she continued the spin for another second on the slick hardwood. She leaped back to her feet, continuing to practically run across the studio as her body began to smoothly respond to the high energy of the song. _Don't kid yourself, Miki. You put it on here to try to see what so many people see in her, in her music. What appeal it holds that yours doesn't._ So she allowed part of her mind to listen to the song, to the words that sounded so simple and nearly taunting to her, teasing her with talk of starting over when Hannah Montana knew nothing of what she had left behind to chase her dream. _Or maybe you just put it on here to piss yourself off, to twist the knife a bit deeper, because she really _is_ better than you are. _

As the next track began, Mikayla felt herself noticeably relax as the music shifted to the aggressive sound of The Donnas' "Take It Off." She didn't notice the small group of observers she had quietly accumulated, peeking in through a slight crack in one of the rarely-used rear doors.

"Where the hell did she learn to dance like that?" whispered one of Mikayla's backup dancers. "I've not ever seen her do anything like those moves, and I've practiced with her for almost a year now."

"_I_ can't do some of those moves," replied one of the female choreographers, similarly stunned at the surprising display of the young woman's talents. "Did she have some kind of formal training? Ballet or interpretive dance or something like that?"

A third observer, another of Mikayla's male dancers, whispered back, "I have no clue. She never talks about going to school or growing up or her family or anything. She's just all bitch, all the time."

"Until now," corrected the first dancer. "Now, it looks she's actually... enjoying herself."

And that she was. Mikayla was sweating heavily, but she refused to stop just yet. She had been at it for about forty minutes when "Rebel Yell" by Billy Idol came on. She took a long drink and smiled as she tossed her bottle full of Gatorade down during the opening strains of the song, running across the floor and doing a ballet leap, her left leg extended forward perfectly horizontal and her right leg backward the same way. She nearly overdid the leap, but she managed to get her feet back under her in time to make an elegant landing. This time she used the racing rock music to fuel a dance that mixed elements of several different styles, from the raw sensuality of salsa to the exaggerated moves of jazz, blending them all together as she moved fluidly across the slick hardwood. However, her growing fatigue was beginning to allow some persistent memories of today's therapy session to leak through into her conscious mind.

"_Alright, Mikayla, now I'm going to say some words. I'd like you to tell me the first thing that comes to your mind for each of them."_

"_And why would I do that?" Mikayla replied, glaring at the psychologist. "You've already had me talking for half an hour."_

_The woman who looked not much older than Mikayla leaned forward, her smile reminding Mikayla of a shark closing in for the kill. "Because somewhere deep inside, I think you want to understand what drives you just as much as I do."_

Mikayla kicked one of the chairs deliberately, sending it tumbling over and sliding away from her as she spun, not noticing the trio of secret observers scurry away from the far door, letting it quietly close on its own. She remembered what had happened to her. In fact, she knew she'd never forget any of it. But remembering the past had never brought her closer to truly understanding her behavior in the present,_ that_ she had to admit.

"_Family," said the psychologist._

"_Loss."_

"_Success."_

"_Wealth."_

"_Wealth."_

"_Security."_

Mikayla held her current position as the song ended, taking a good look at herself in the mirror beside her. She was sweating, the front of her sports bra obviously wet and her long black hair tossed about, scattered into curly strings as they fell across her face and shoulders.

"_Music."_

"_Dreams."_

The next song began to play. She pushed away from the wall, spinning as she crossed the floor, her slick-soled shoes gliding easily across the smooth wood.

"_Fame."_

"_Acceptance."_

"_Home."_

"_Where the heart is." A pause at the doctor's stern expression. "Hey, you didn't say it had to be one word answers."_

She flung her head to the side, sending her long hair whipping around. Maybe it hadn't been the best idea to piss off the psychotherapist, but what's done is done. She'd survive. Just like she had survived all her other mistakes in life.

"_Mother."_

"_... I miss her."_

"_Father."_

"_Rapist."_

_Dr. Fellowes looked up at that statement._

"_No, I'm _not_ interested in talking about that," said Mikayla sharply. "Anyway, it's over now. He can die in some gutter or burn in hell for all I care."_

"_Alright," replied the doctor, her tone of voice indicating it was anything but. "Men."_

"_Sex."_

"_Women."_

"_Bitches."_

"_Children."_

_For once, Mikayla didn't reply immediately. Finally, she said, "Innocence."_

She was tired now. The aching in her arms and legs was telling her that she needed to stop very soon, and she noted how her left leg began to shake as she moved into a series of _pointe_ steps. She willed her muscles to hold the difficult position as she glided across the studio's floor, ending in a long leap. As the final song on her CD began to play, The Killers' "Human," her thoughts began to spin out of control as her fatigue overwhelmed her self-control. She let her body cool down with less-demanding movements as the music still propelled her dance, but inside her mind was doing the opposite.

"_Love."_

"_Lies."_

"_Happiness."_

"_Control."_

"_Marriage."_

"_Stupidity."_

_There was a distinct pause before Dr. Fellowes said, "Hannah Montana."_

"_... Do I have to do this one?"_

"_No, but I'd like for you to. Hannah Montana."_

"_Perfect."_

_The psychologist stared at the singer for a surprised second before she neatly picked back up. "Lola Montana."_

"_Partners, in everything."_

"_Jake Ryan."_

"_Okay, now you're going too far. Did Margot put you up to this?"_

"_Jake Ryan."_

"_... Betrayal."_

"_Alcohol."_

"_Restraint."_

"_Drugs."_

"_Regret."_

"_Religion."_

"_Bullshit."_

"_Dreams."_

_After a long pause, "Redemption."_

As the song reached its end, Mikayla stopped dancing. Her legs were burning as she fell to the floor roughly, extending her right leg first as she stretched it out on the floor, bending to touch her toes. The final chorus ran through her head as she focused on the lyrics to stop the recollection of today's therapy session. "Stupid fucking question," she said out loud. But as she shifted and stretched over her extended left leg, touching those toes and holding her position for several seconds, she thought about the seemingly nonsensical chorus. _Maybe it's about choosing to give up emotions and step beyond the limitations of being human. About committing everything to your goals. _

She stood, easing slowly into a backbend until her hands touched the floor behind her. _I made that decision a long time ago._ A chill came across her as a thought popped into her mind, a little voice inside her that she despised furiously: _But are you happy with that decision?_

She fell as her arms gave way, hitting the floor with a thump. Pain shot through her head and back, but she pushed it aside as she rolled over and got to her knees. There were two very good reasons why she hated that particular voice her conscience sometimes used. First, it was almost always right, particularly when it told her something she really didn't want to hear. And second, it always sounded disturbingly like either Hannah Montana or her glow-headed wife.

She stood, walking over to grab her bottle and CD. She hurried out of the studio, unlocking the door as she passed it. Once back in her private locker room, she turned on the large shower and put her things in her locker, leaving her sweaty clothes in the laundry hamper provided for her. As she stepped into the warm water, she carefully turned up the temperature until it was stinging her skin. After a few minutes she came to a decision. She quickly washed her hair and body, not bothering to dry her hair. Instead she just dried it with a towel, then she pulled it back and pinned it in place with a hair band. She dressed in more casual clothes, then she grabbed her bag and pulled her phone out.

After two rings, she heard the click of the connection, followed by, "This is Vera Blaike."

"Hey Vera, it's Mikayla."

"Hello, Mikayla! Usually I have the dubious pleasure of dealing with your agent."

Mikayla laughed. Ms. Blaike didn't care much for Margot, but in her position as one of the executive producers for Mikayla's music she couldn't exactly avoid dealing with the abrasive woman. "Yeah, I feel your pain there, too. Hey, I've decided on the next single."

"Really. I take it that since you're calling me that it's not going to be what Margot was pushing for at the meeting?"

Mikayla smiled. While the record industry was flooded with egos and control freaks, there were still a few good people out there. "Right. I want to go with 'Broken-Hearted' as the next single."

"And you're positive that it's going to be on your next album? I mean, if it's as big a hit as I think it could be, we need to ride it to sell albums, not just single tune downloads."

"I know, I know, but this album's not even been out a year!"

After a pause, Blaike said, "You really want this single out, don't you?" with a sympathetic voice.

Mikayla reflexively looked down as she reached her car. "Yeah, I really do. It's the strongest I've felt about a song in a long time."

"I probably shouldn't ask you if it's about something that happened to you personally, should I?"

Mikayla felt her eyes sting as she replied, "I'd prefer if you didn't."

"Fair enough. Alright, Mikayla, I'll take care of it. For the record, I think this is the best choice for your next single, too. Fans can always tell what's authentic and what's not. And take your time on the next album. We want it to be good, not something rushed out the door. We can always re-promote the single right before the next album's release."

Mikayla sat down in her car, closing the door behind her. "Thanks, Vera. I owe you a favor."

"Then call me more often. That way I can deal less with Margot and more with you. You're significantly nicer when she's not around."

Mikayla laughed softly. "God, tell me something I _don't_ know. And thanks again."

There was a note of what might have been motherly concern in her voice as Vera said, "Take care of yourself, Mikayla. There's a reason I wanted to work with you, and one day I might just tell you. Until then, I'll help you out as much as I can."

The sentiment expressed in the older woman's words touched Mikayla unexpectedly, and she had to force her voice not to break. "Thanks," she said simply, then she closed her phone with a snap. _What did she mean by that, saying there was a reason she wanted to work with me?_ The young woman thought for a bit, then she shrugged as her stomach began to grumble. "Yeah, yeah, I hear you," she said with a tiny smile as she started her Vanquish with a roar of the engine.

Half a country away, Miley and Lilly stepped off the plane at the airport in Dallas, Texas. They were instantly bombarded with a wave of camera flashes and reporters all shouting questions for Hannah and Lola Montana. "Ugh, this kinda stinks," grumbled Miley. Her pregnancy had gotten to the point that she didn't travel as well as she had just two months ago, and adding this noisy, intrusive reception to an uncomfortable public flight here was only making things worse.

"Yeah, well, at least we got here in time," said Lilly, trying to shield her wife from the brunt of the reporters and cameras. "Whose idea was it to have the jet scheduled for service _today_, I mean?"

"It was supposed to have been done last week," said Jen, trailed by her husband Lee. "But some dumbass rescheduled it to this week for some reason, and he didn't clear it with the scheduler."

"Well, we're here safely, at least, and we should have enough time for you to make it to rehearsal, right Hannah?" said Lilly pleasantly, trying to lift her best friend's mood as much as possible.

"I guess," said Miley glumly. "I already texted Kelly and told her we just got here and that the whole flight had been a disaster."

"Aw, but we got to sign all those autographs for those adorable little kids!"

Miley turned and gave Lilly a look of disbelief. "Lola," she said. "Only we could wind up on a plane with two classes of first graders flyin' home from Disneyland. And do you remember that all of 'em had just had a bunch a' chocolate before they got on the plane?"

Lilly grimaced. She had been hoping Miley had forgotten that part. "Well, at least they settled down once they got their autographs..."

"Yeah, that's true," said Miley. "Probably shouldn't be so grumpy, huh, girlfriend?"

Lilly smiled. "Could've been worse."

"High school boys?" asked Miley with a knowing grin. "With wanderin' eyes?"

"You read my mind," replied Lilly. "I hope your dad had a better flight in from Tennessee." The throng of reporters began to encircle the party consisting of Miley, Lilly, Jen Kittrell and her husband Lee as they stopped, sizing up the best path through the mob. "Geez, it'd be really nice if they'd let us through so we could get our bags and get on the road to the stadium. You'd probably like to get some practice in. Not that you need it, though."

"Please," said Miley as she rolled her eyes. "I'd like to at least see what kind of stage they've got set up." She impatiently tapped her foot on the tile floor, the bright red heels clicking with each impact. "Hey, could ya'll please move to the side?!" she yelled abruptly, leaning to her right so she didn't scream in her wife's face or ear. "We're kinda on a tight schedule here, you know!"

Suddenly a large body scooted past Miley and Lilly, neatly missing them by inches. "All right, clear the way!" yelled Roxy, using her arms and body to carve a path through the mass of reporters. Miley and Lilly linked hands and quickly followed in Roxy's wake, Lilly leading the way for her pregnant wife, with Jen and Lee right behind them.

A few hours later, Miley and Lilly were standing on the sidelines, watching the Tennessee Titans battle their way to a 21-10 lead over the Dallas Cowboys as the clock ticked down to halftime. Dallas had been awarded hosting rights for this Super Bowl years ago, and it had been an unusual coincidence that the Cowboys had made it to the Super Bowl being hosted in their home stadium. As the teams made their way into the depths of the stadium, the halftime crew scurried into action, descending on the open field like ants spewing out of an anthill.

"You watching me from here?" asked Miley with an amused smile as she looked into her lover's glittering blue eyes, their brilliance brought out by the sky blue wig Lilly was wearing for the game. _To show my support for your team_, she had told Miley, and even though Miley could have cared less about the actual game, her wife's thoughtful gesture was completely adorable.

Lilly looked back into Miley's eyes as she stood as close as Miley's slowly growing belly would allow her. "Of course," Lilly said with a smug grin, "unless you can get me closer. _Without_ asking me to sing. Lola doesn't do that for just anyone."

"Just her wife?" asked Miley, leaning in to rub noses with her best friend.

"Yes," said Lilly, her happiness evident in her contented tone of voice as she placed a soft kiss on the nose she had just rubbed. "Just for you, baby."

"I feel special," replied Miley honestly, although there was a hint of sassiness in her voice.

Lilly grinned as she hugged her wife. "You should," she said. "Because you are." She smiled, then dropped to a squat and kissed Miley's belly through the soft fabric of her pink shirt. "Just like this little girl is special."

Miley slowly took in the sight of Lilly on her knees, placing soft kisses on her belly. Images of Lilly began to superimpose in her mind: Lilly kissing her, Lilly hugging her, tickling her, teasing her, making love to her, all in similar positions with similar vantage points. As Miley saw those ghostly images accumulate in her mind, what stood out was the love in Lilly's eyes, the one constant in every one of those images. No matter the reason or the context, that devotion and adoration was always inscribed in those ocean-blue eyes that belonged to her partner.

Miley gently tugged Lilly's hands, wordlessly asking her to stand back up. "Not much longer now, sweetheart," she said to her wife, already knowing what Lilly was thinking because she was thinking it too. "Then we get to hold her."

Lilly closed her eyes, dreaming ahead to being able to cradle their child, to kiss her feathery hair, to hear her soft baby cries, to feel the tiny heartbeat and gentle breathing of a life so new and precious that all the world lay before it. "I can barely wait, hon," she said, losing herself for a moment in those daydreams of their future. "But first, you've got a show to do."

Miley looked out onto the field, where the stage was nearly complete. "Well, Kelly's goin' on first, then I'll do my songs after her."

Lilly smiled knowingly. "Then you do your surprise duet?"

Miley nodded. "Yeah, only about a dozen people even know about it. I think it'll turn some heads."

"I think that would be fair to say," said Lilly matter-of-factly. "Okay, go be the rock goddess that you are, lover." She gave Miley a long, loving kiss, then she waved as Miley made her way discreetly to the stage where Kelly Clarkson was just beginning to sing. She watched Miley disappear into the background with her escort of a security guard and a production assistant, then she unlocked Miley's Hannah phone. She tried not to laugh as she scrolled through the pictures, finally selecting a quite humorous one of Lilly painting her toenails, her hair wrapped securely in a large white towel and wearing a fluffy yellow robe, a look of shock reflected on her face. Miley had taken it of her after a concert last year, and she had paid for it by Lilly tickling her mercilessly once her toenails were dry. Lilly snickered as she set the picture as Hannah's new wallpaper for her phone and relocked the phone. Sometimes the little things were the best.

Kelly Clarkson didn't disappoint, delivering a fiery four-song set to start the halftime concert. Lilly truly thought of the Texan as a real friend, and more than once she and Miley had talked about revealing their secret identities to Kelly. They had agreed that they would tell Kelly if it ever became necessary, but until then they chose to keep the secret among as few people as possible. However, the secret remained one of the only things that they kept from Kelly, as they enjoyed the honesty and life that defined their friend.

As the audience loudly cheered Kelly while she waved to the crowd, Lilly was approached by two security guards. "Mrs. Montana?" one of them, a tall man who towered over Lilly, asked politely.

"Yes?" replied Lilly, slightly confused.

The other security guard, a young woman just slightly taller than Lilly, smiled as she said, "Your wife has made it known that she expects you to be next to the stage while she's singing."

Lilly smiled, unable to help herself. "Oh she did, did she?" she asked coyly.

"Yes ma'am," replied the first guard. "And she's getting ready to start, so we need to get a move on."

Lilly grinned madly. "Can't keep that gorgeous creature waiting, can we?" she said pleasantly, extending an arm for the security guard to take.

"No ma'am," he replied with his own smile as he politely took Lilly's elbow and walked her to the center of the field, the other security guard keeping pace on Lilly's left. The timing was perfect; right as Miley went on stage, singing "Rock Your Body," she looked down and saw Lilly standing just below the level of the stage, clapping and cheering on her favorite singer.

After Miley's four-song set, she waved to the crowd until the lights went down, plunging the stage into blackness. Lilly felt a gentle hand on her shoulder as a familiar voice said, "Wish us luck, LoLo." She turned to see Kelly smiling at her, microphone in hand.

"Ah, you two don't need luck," Lilly said off-handedly. "I think you were both born singing." After a two second pause, she gave Kelly a quick hug. "But good luck anyway!" she said quickly. Kelly hurried up the steps and moved to her position on stage opposite from where Miley was standing. As Kelly hurried past her, Miley turned and practically ran over to Lilly, heels clicking with every step on the metal stage. "What are you doing?!" hissed Lilly, motioning for her wife to get back to her position. As if on cue, the stadium announcer began to inform the crowd that they were in for a special one-of-a-kind performance that evening.

"I want a kiss from my wife for good luck!" hissed Miley in reply. "And you better hurry, 'cause the lights'll be comin' up in—" She was silenced by Lilly's lips on hers, made possible by Lilly jumping up onto the stage. The kiss was brief but deep, and Lilly punctuated it by licking Miley's lips as they pulled apart. "Oh yeah, that's what I'm talkin' about," said Miley dreamily.

"Good, now get your butt over there where you're supposed to be!" whispered Lilly loudly, turning Miley around and lightly pushing her toward her mark. She scrambled down and off the stage just as Miley reached her spot, mere seconds before the music for Kelly's "My Life Would Suck Without You" began playing.

Lights sprang up over half of the stage as Kelly sang the first two lines, _"Guess this means you're sorry, you're standin' at my door/Guess this means you take back all you said before,_" then the other half was enveloped in light as Miley sang the next two lines, _"Like how much you wanted anyone but me/You said you'd never come back, but here you are again."_ As they both sang the chorus, their voices melded into something that Lilly's mind could only describe as angelic. Lilly's mouth went dry and a shiver ran across her bare skin as she listened to Miley's and Kelly's voices blend beautifully. There was something in the air, something like a tingle of electricity before lightning strikes, something that told her that being here at this moment was truly special, an experience that she would look back on and feel a sense of pride because she had been here when it happened.

As the first chorus came to an end, applause spontaneously broke out in the stands, ending quickly when Kelly sang the next two lines. Lilly looked around the stadium as Miley again sang the next two, and everywhere Lilly looked she saw people standing on their feet, sharing the same sense of history in the making that she could feel. By the time she looked back to the stage, Miley and Kelly were standing closer but still somewhat separated, facing each other as they sang the second chorus together. Lilly could feel her skin crawl with anticipation as the music softened and Kelly sang the relatively quiet next verse alone while she and Miley slowly walked toward each other, both smiling at how much fun they were quite obviously having. As they let the music play, building up to the final two choruses, they reached each other and playfully high-fived before they suddenly turned, standing back to back as they began to belt out the last two choruses. While they had been singing beautifully before, the two of them let their strong voices swell now, harmonizing such that each young woman's voice complemented the other in a powerful yet elegant way.

Lilly didn't think she'd ever seen anyone complement Miley's singing so well before. Not many people could match Miley's pure, clear voice combined with the strength that came from both natural talent and years of experience, but Kelly's voice was up to the challenge. Lilly was on her tiptoes as the two singers began the final chorus, and she smiled as she saw Miley's left arm and Kelly's right arm drop down, letting them hold hands in a friendly way as they finished the song. Lilly knew Miley well enough to recognize the gesture as one of friendship and sisterhood between two musicians who had held fast to their friendship through years in the industry. Both Lilly and Miley knew that no one would ever come between them, and Kelly was completely aware of that too; there was also the small matter of Kelly being straight, so jealousy never entered Lilly's mind at seeing the friendly gesture. In fact, she thought it was quite adorable, adding a visual element of emotion to the already spellbinding performance.

As their voices stopped with the end of the song, Miley and Kelly held their positions, back to back against each other. They released each other's hand as the cheers, whistles, cries, screams and cowbells began to sound, and the din only grew in intensity as the cheers continued. Lilly was bouncing up and down to give Miley a hug and tell her how great a job she had done, so when Miley motioned for her to join them, she was instantly on the stage and running over to them.

"Oooph!" said Kelly as Lilly hugged both of them tightly, being careful to not squeeze Miley's belly too much.

"Holy cow, that was amazing!" Lilly shrieked. "You two did the best job I've ever seen singing! EVER!"

A pouty look came across Miley's face as she asked, "Better than my concerts?"

Lilly saw the teasing for what it was and quickly replied, "Not your _private_ ones for me," making Miley blush and Kelly break into laughter.

"Just tell her that she's the best ever, Lola, it's okay with me," said Kelly happily.

Lilly smiled. "Well, then you're the second-best ever, Kel. Is that okay?"

Kelly nodded, fully aware of how much love flowed between her two dear friends. "I can live with that," she said, "_if_ I get to put a song on your next movie's soundtrack."

"I think we can work something out," said Lilly, giddy from her wife's and friend's stellar performance. "You realize that tomorrow everybody's gonna be talking about you two singing, not the game, right?"

"No way," said Miley. "How much you wanna bet?"

Lilly thought for a minute. The cheers were still raining down, and now the band was taking their well-deserved bows and waves to the crowd as the three young women continued to talk. "Laundry for a week? No, wait, that won't work. You don't need to be bending over so much."

"How about dishes?" suggested Miley. "Oh, we have a dishwasher," she added with a disappointed face. "How about the loser has to open the door for the winner for two weeks?"

Now Lilly developed a pouty face. "But I _like_ opening the door for you, honey," she said softly, meaning every word of it.

"Awww," said Miley with a smile. "Okay, we can keep opening doors for each other, then."

"Yay!" said Lilly, clapping softly. "Oh, I know! Winner gets to pull the first prank on Jackson next time he and Kaela come to visit!"

Miley grinned. "I think we have a winner."

Kelly shook her head. "I think we got two of 'em," she said as she watched her friends. "Now let's get off this stage so they can get the game started back up! My 'Boys are wantin' to start their comeback."

"Yeah, yeah, we'll see," said Miley teasingly, smiling as she took Lilly's hand. The three made their way off the stage as the cheers finally began to fade. "But no matter what the score is, friends always win," she said happily.

"Amen to that, sister," said Kelly, taking Lilly's other hand as they walked together to the sideline. "Amen to that."

Several hours later, after the Titans had put away the Cowboys 38-30, Miley and Lilly were relaxing in the penthouse suite of the Hotel Adolphus in downtown Dallas. Lilly was stretched out on one of the luxurious couches, wrapped in a short pink silk bathrobe as she waited on Miley to finish in the bathroom. They were planning on watching some television together, but the elegant suite made Lilly suspect that the television would quickly be replaced by more intimate moments. However, as she flipped through the current issue of _Us Weekly_ she heard a faint sound coming from the bathroom. She couldn't identify it, but that barely audible sound immediately triggered alarm bells in her mind. "Miles?" she called out, tossing her magazine on the cherry wood table and getting to her feet. "You okay, honey?" she asked as she hurried to the bathroom.

As she approached the closed door, Lilly could now hear sniffling from inside the bathroom. "Miley? What's wrong, baby?" She turned the door handle, opening the door slowly in case Miley was standing just in front of the door. As Lilly opened the door, she saw Miley sitting on the side of the bathtub, tears running down her face as she cried softly. She was wearing a long white bathrobe, significantly fluffier than Lilly's, and her wet hair had been pulled back and pinned into place with a pink plastic headband.

"Miley!" said Lilly, dropping to her knees on the marble floor with more than a twinge of pain as her knees hit the hard tiles, but she pushed the pain aside in her concern for her wife. She carefully took Miley's hands and placed a kiss on the knuckles of each hand. "You're scaring me, Miley," she said, her voice slightly quavering as she spoke. "What's the matter? Are you hurting? Is it something with the baby?"

"No," Miley moaned softly, shaking her head. "It's me," she added, as if that should have been enough for everything to be clear to Lilly.

"Okay, not following you here," replied Lilly. "What's wrong with you, sweetheart?"

Miley looked up at the ceiling, and from this angle Lilly could see how red her eyes were. "I'm huge, Lilly. I'm fat."

"Oh Miley, no, honey, you're—"

"While I was in the bath, I was thinking about how romantic this place is, and how we've never been here, and then I got to thinking about having some flowers brought up for you, and then I could come out and do a little private concert for you, maybe a sexy little dance..."

"Oooh, Lilly likey the sound of that," said Lilly, making Miley smile despite the tears trickling down her cheeks.

"But then I looked in the mirror!" said Miley angrily, pointing at the full-length mirror on the wall. "And I saw that I looked like a manatee-eeeee!" she said, her voice degenerating into a wail as she finished the sentence.

"Miley," said Lilly, softly at first but then more firmly, _"Miley." _ She tugged her best friend to her feet, leading her into the bedroom and next to the huge bed. "Honey, you do not look like anything except the woman I love," Lilly said earnestly, gently pushing Miley to a seated position on the elevated bed. Because of its height, Miley was still in more of a standing position than a seated one, and Lilly stepped in between her wife's legs as she wrapped her arms around Miley's shoulders, holding her wife's head against her chest. "You're pregnant, Miles. Yes, your body looks different than we're used to, but there's a reason for that. Do you remember what the doctor told you about the baby if you didn't gain any weight while you were pregnant?"

Miley mumbled from against Lilly's warm chest, "That it wouldn't be healthy for the baby."

"That's right. She told you that you needed to gain some weight, just to not overdo it. And you've done great, girlfriend. She told you last week that you were gaining almost exactly what she wanted, and that the baby was nice and healthy because you're taking such good care of her."

There was a long pause before Miley's muffled voice could be heard. "I guess."

Lilly smiled even though Miley couldn't see it from her position. "It's true. You're already a great mommy, and you're only going to get better. So I don't want to hear you say anything bad about yourself or about how you look right now, okay? Because if you do—" Lilly paused for a moment as Miley's fingers brushed against her stomach. "Did you just untie my robe's sash?"

"Uh huh."

Lilly sucked in a breath as Miley's warm fingers began to dance across her flat stomach, weaving the sensual magic that only Miley could when it came to Lilly. "Okay, j-just wanted to make sure," Lilly stammered. "Like I was saying—mmmmmm..." The feel of Miley's insanely hot mouth on her left breast took Lilly's breath away, and when that loving mouth closed on the nipple and areola and began to suck, Lilly thought that her legs had just fallen out from under her. Thankfully, Miley had shifted her own grip on her wife, securely hanging onto Lilly's waist as she tenderly showed her Lilly how much she loved her.

"Good thing I had a hold of you, huh?" said Miley proudly as she released Lilly's left breast and slid her lips and tongue down and across Lilly's left breast, over the smooth skin of her sternum and slowly up the fullness of her right breast.

"Uh huh," gasped Lilly as she recovered her composure and her strength. She looked down, her heart ablaze with love as she took in the sight of her lover gently reaffirming their commitment by her act of sensual worship, pledges and promises etched in warmth and moist kisses across skin dancing from the sizzling contact between the two of them.

When Miley cast her gaze upward, she met Lilly's cobalt stare with a shudder first up and then down her spine. "I love you, Lillian Jessica Truscott," she said with a thick voice, "and I'd carry two dozen of your children, no matter how big I got."

Lilly slid to the side and sat down on the bed, crawling backwards as she pulled Miley along with her. She spread open her bathrobe as she lay back on the bed, sliding her arms out of the sleeves as she watched Miley mirror her actions with her thicker robe. "And I love you, Miley May Stewart Truscott, every minute of every day for the rest of time, and that love will always be there for you no matter what life brings us." Miley slid her body carefully up Lilly's, meeting her lover with a prolonged kiss that raised goosebumps over already-sensitized skin. "But let's just focus on one child for now, okay?" Lilly quickly said as they parted for air.

Miley broke down in laughter, burying her face against Lilly's neck as Lilly began to laugh as well. "I can't believe that I got a wife who not only understands these nutso hormones but knows just what to do to help me through 'em when they rear up and strike like a copperhead when you kick over its rock," Miley said, shaking her head.

"Yeah, you got pretty lucky when I fell in love with you," said Lilly, smirking as they stared into each other's deep blue eyes. "Now get back to what you were doing when I was still standing up, woman."

**Author's Afterword:** Yes, this chapter has something of a split personality, but that's on purpose. It's what the story wanted, and so I acquiesced. And if the little chat with Kelly sounded a bit too sappy, then blame it on me watching an episode of _HM_ right before finishing that section. When are people—no, when is MILEY STEWART going to realize that Jake Ryan is no good for her? I mean, he's hot for her, he's cold for her, he's dating someone else, he pops back up and tortures her by making her choose, he tells her he's marrying Traci, he plays a mean prank on her... What a goober. And if Ms. Miley Stewart doesn't realize that he's not worth her time, she's setting a bad example for the girls watching _HM_. Wise up, Miley! Your dream girl is right beside you. Kick Jiltin' Jake to the curb where he belongs. And while I'm on that subject, Lilly need to set her sights a bit higher than Oliver. I mean, I've read a half dozen good scenarios on how she could break up with Oliver and get together with Miley, just in the last week! Liley writers are starting to mobilize, I think, and that's a good thing!

Next chapter is going to be special, because we're finally going to be there when Miley and Lilly have their baby! Hope to see everyone soon, and I hope life treats each of you well until then!

Jo


	19. Chapter 19: A Star Is Born

**Author's Note:** Okay, we have a short skip ahead to process. This chapter starts roughly four months after our previous one. It's now early June, the fifth of June to be exact, two weeks after Miley and Lilly graduated from college. Why no coverage of their college graduation? Well, several reasons, but mainly because this story isn't about that. I might one day go back and do a story focusing on them in college (which sounds sort of fun), but for right now I'm staying on track. As for this chapter's music, yes, I've used it before, but I think it captured the theme of this chapter better than any of the other songs that I considered. And it's still one of my favorite songs.

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist or publication mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo P.

Chapter 19: A Star Is Born

_Only love can set us free_

_Only love can bear the truth_

_Only love can bring us peace_

_Only love can save me and you_

_Only love can purify_

_Only love can conquer fear_

_Only love can justify_

_Only love can make a miracle of life_

Sophie B. Hawkins, "Only Love"

The bright California sun beat down upon the light brown dirt of the infield, mercilessly pounding the ten players on the softball field. Miley Truscott, seated comfortably in a folding chair with a soft blue cloth seat, clapped and whistled as her wife Lilly stepped up to the plate, ready to bat. "C'mon Lilly!" she yelled, making her friends Oliver and Ashley Oken reflexively shy away from her powerful voice. "Drill that ball!"

"Or maybe she could let you _shout_ the ball into the outfield," said Oliver as he stuck a finger in his ear and vigorously shook it around.

"Ollie baby?" asked Ashley sweetly.

"Yes, beautiful wife?" he replied, just as sweetly.

"Please don't stick your finger in your ear and wiggle it around like that again. That is _so_ gross!" Ashley turned to watch Lilly bat, but she made the mistake of turning back to say something else to Oliver just in time to catch him sniffing the earwax on his fingertip. "Ewww!" She not-so-softly pushed him away from her. "What did I ever see in you?" she said, unable to hide her smile.

"You just couldn't resist the Oken charm," Oliver said smugly, stretching his arms above his head.

"Hey! Oliver!" called out Miley. "Put them arms down; you'll kill the birds flyin' over!" Ashley laughed at her friend's joke, with Miley fighting to keep from laughing herself.

"Oh, ha ha," said Oliver sarcastically. "Well, let me say—"

"WHOOO!" yelled Miley, not even a second after the solid thwack of impact from Lilly hitting the ball reached the spectators. "Great hit, sweetheart!" she yelled, drawing a few curious glances from the other team and their fans. By now all of Lilly's softball team had become used to Miley's enthusiastic support for her wife, and while some of them had been a bit apprehensive at first, they had slowly realized that Lilly and Miley loved each other the same way any other married couple did—only even more strongly and honestly.

As Lilly rounded first base and sprinted to second, she slowed her stride as she watched the left fielder throw the ball back in to the shortstop. She stopped on second base, standing lightly on her feet as she watched the ball come back to the pitcher.

Miley shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Her stomach had been upset all morning, and having these Braxton-Hicks contractions for the last three weeks had kept her nerves on edge. The first time she had felt those cramping pains had resulted in a near-fiasco.

"_Lillian Jessica Truscott, if you drive any faster we are going to TRAVEL THROUGH TIME!!" Miley screamed as Lilly swerved to miss a car threatening to pull out in front of them. The fact that it was one o'clock in the morning meant that traffic was light—Miley thanked God once again for that simple fact—but Lilly was going WAY too fast. "Slow down! She's not fallin' out of my uterus just yet!"_

"_Sorry sorry sorry!" said Lilly nervously. "I just—shoot, was that a cop we just passed?"_

_Miley glanced into the rear-view mirror in time to see red and blue lights dance to life behind them. "That would be a solid yes, I think," she said dryly._

"_Well, I'm not stopping."_

_Miley whirled to look at her wife, but before she could say anything a particularly painful contraction hit her. She focused on breathing through the waves of pain, and after several uncomfortable seconds she had regained her breath. "Lilly, that's a police officer behind us. If you don't stop, he'll take you to jail, honey."_

_The determined look on her wife's face and the way her chin was firmly set indicated clearly to Miley that Lilly really wasn't stopping. "We've got our hazard lights on, and he can just follow us to the hospital," Lilly said calmly. "Miley, you're my number one priority right now, you and our baby. Getting a speeding ticket or even getting arrested are WAY behind the two of you on my priority list."_

_Miley smiled as she gazed lovingly at her wife's profile. "Thank you," she said softly before adding, "Jailbird."_

_Lilly turned into the hospital's Emergency Department, quickly reaching the unloading area. She put the car into Park and jumped out of the car, making sure to run around the front of the pearl-colored sedan, glowing a bright white beneath the powerful lights above them. Miley managed to open her door as Lilly reached her, concentrating so intently on her wife that she didn't notice the officer approach them. As soon as he saw that Miley was pregnant and in pain—another contraction hit her as Lilly got her to her feet—he put away his small notebook and hurried to help steady Miley._

"_Thanks, but I've got her," Lilly said hurriedly, shifting Miley to make sure that most of her weight would be carried across Lilly's shoulders._

"_You sure?" asked the officer, disbelief evident in his voice. _

_Two nurses came racing out of the emergency department with a wheelchair, which Lilly carefully guided Miley into. "She's stronger than she looks," gasped Miley, sparing a pained smile for the officer._

_As soon as Miley was safely seated in the wheelchair, Lilly looked at the officer and said, "I'm SO sorry about speeding coming in here, but this is our first baby and my wife started having contractions that were five minutes apart and all I could think about was getting her here before the baby was born and have I mentioned that I'm really really sorry and that you can follow me in and write me a ticket if you need to?"_

"_Honey," said Miley, grabbing Lilly's hand and tugging her along as the nurses began to wheel her into the hospital, "shut up and come on."_

_Ten seconds later the automatic doors to the emergency department patiently slid shut, leaving the police officer still standing there, silent and unmoving. Finally he said to himself with a puzzled voice, "Wife?" as he scratched his head beneath his hat. _

"You okay, Miley?" asked Ashley. She had been watching Miley surreptitiously the last few minutes as she only halfheartedly read her latest gossip magazine.

Miley nodded, shielding her eyes from the sun despite the sunglasses she had on. "Yeah, stomach's just hurtin' this mornin'."

"Not contractions, is it?"

"Nah, just some of those Braxton-Hicks ones. Not sure how I'm supposed to tell 'em apart from the real ones," she grumbled.

"Here," said Ashley, extending her arm and waving the glossy magazine in front of Miley's face. "Catch up on the latest scoop."

"Ugh, don't support them, Ash," Miley said, a disgusting look on her face as she pushed the gossip magazine away.

Ashley looked over, staring at Miley. She smiled a sly grin as she said, "You know you want to."

Miley looked at Ashley for long seconds before she finally snatched the magazine away. "Oh, alright," she said with an exasperated voice. Before she could take a good look at the magazine, however, she heard the sound of a crisply hit softball. She quickly looked up to see Lilly take off for third as the ball skipped out of the infield. As the left center fielder bobbled the ball when she bent to pick it up, the third base coach waved for Lilly to turn for home. Miley sat up in her seat as Lilly raced around third, her eyes locked onto home plate as she sprinted for home. She easily beat the throw home, stepping on the plate at full speed as she finally slowed down, leaping against the backstop's fence to finally stop her forward momentum. As she did so, she grinned a huge grin for Miley, only a few feet away from where Lilly was.

"Way to go, Lilly! Yeah!" shouted Miley happily. "Love you, baby!"

"Love you too, Miley Pie!" Lilly shouted back, making Miley blush slightly at her wife's pet name for her.

As Lilly hurried back to her team's dugout, stopping to retrieve the bat cast aside by the previous batter, Miley allowed herself to flip through the pages of Ashley's book full of the latest celebrity gossip as well as several pictures to go along with that gossip. "I can't believe you're reading this stuff, Ashley," Miley said. "In fact, I can't believe _I'm_ reading this stuff."

"Page 26," Ashley said cryptically, taking a sip from her thermos full of water.

Miley flipped through the magazine to that particular page, whistling as she sucked in a sudden breath. "Whoa," she said as she took in the incredibly sexy picture of Lola Montana clad in a bright blue bikini, nicely complimenting her pink hair and healthy skin. Her daring outfit and pose readily showed off her sleek figure and strong muscles, particularly her arms, legs and abdomen. In the top corner of the page was a headline reading "The Hottest Young Actress in Hollywood?," something Miley certainly agreed with. She remembered when Lilly had gone to that particular photo shoot last month; Miley had to miss it due to a meeting at DreamWorld to outline her plans for Hannah over the next few months. Hannah was obviously going to be out on maternity leave for a while, and Miley wanted to make sure she had everything covered before she went into labor. While no one had explicitly said that she _couldn't_ work while on maternity leave for a few weeks, Miley wanted to spend all of that precious time that she could with Lilly and their new baby. They had planned to take six weeks off to spend bonding with their new baby girl, and while they were considering making a few public appearances with their daughter once she and Miley were ready, nothing had been set in stone.

"I take it that you like the picture?" asked Ashley, a smug grin on her face.

"Uhh, yeah," said Miley slowly. "I like it. A lot." She finished reading the brief article then flipped through a few more pages before stopping at another picture. "They do really good airbrush work nowadays," Miley said, handing the magazine back to Ashley, holding her place with her fingers.

Ashley took the magazine and looked at the page Miley was holding it open at, laughing as she saw whose picture Miley was talking about. "Mikayla?" she asked, still laughing. "What all did they airbrush? Does she have freakish wrinkles or some kind of skin condition or something?"

Miley turned to watch the game some more. "Nah," she said, "I was talkin' about how they managed to take her little devil horns out of the picture."

"You are a mean woman, Miley Truscott," Ashley said, shaking her head in amusement.

"What's Miley mean about?" asked Oliver, finally tuning into the conversation.

"She said Mikayla had little devil horns that they had to airbrush out," said Ashley, handing Oliver the magazine.

"Actually, she's not accused me of anything lately," said Miley. "Surprising, to say the least."

"What do you think of her new single? Is it called 'Heartbroken'?"

"No, 'Broken-Hearted'," Miley replied. "Lilly and I were talkin' about that song the other day, actually. I think it's probably the best song she's ever put out."

"It's different than what she normally does, I thought."

Miley gave Ashley a sideways look. "You're not supportin' the competition, are you, Ash?" she teased.

Ashley waved a hand dismissively. "Please. The day that tramp becomes true competition for Hannah, I'll move to Tibet."

Miley grinned. "Well, I hope that she's decided to grow up a bit and focus on puttin' out better music rather than tryin' to sell records by stirrin' up trouble."

Ashley stared at Miley for a few seconds, mouth hanging open slightly. "Seriously?"

"Seriously what?"

"You seriously hope that she starts making better music?"

"Yeah, why wouldn't I?"

"Miley!" Ashley said, leaning in. With a lower voice she said, "That little bitch has tried to get under your skin for years now. She tried to push you down at the Oscars, and you were already pregnant then! I know that I personally wish she'd just die or something."

Miley shuddered a bit at hearing Ashley's brutally honest words. "I'm not gonna say that I haven't wished that she'd just go away, because I have. And I don't like her personally, not at all. But I think it's because I grew up in the business that makes me hope she can rise above bein' such a bitch and become successful. I mean, I know what this business can do to people, and most of the time it grinds girls up and spits out what's left of 'em. I just hope she can become more what she has been."

Ashley kept looking into Miley's eyes as she asked, "And does your wife share your sentiments?"

Miley returned Ashley's gaze and sighed as she flatly said, "She wishes Mikayla'd get hit by a falling blimp," carefully enunciating the last two words.

Ashley sputtered with laughter, covering her mouth after just a second. "Oh God, did she really say that?" she asked. "A _blimp_?"

Miley nodded. "Yeah. It was a meteor before that." She looked back at Ashley, whose eyes were full of further questions regarding more details. "It's a Lilly thing," Miley said simply. "I just roll with it." She winced as another contraction began to build.

"I'm trying to talk Oliver into letting me get pregnant," Ashley said abruptly. When Miley didn't answer, she added, "What, no reaction from you?" as she turned to look at Miley.

"Kinda... breathing... here..." said Miley through clenched teeth. After what felt like minutes but was really only twenty seconds, the pain began to fade away as the contraction passed. "Sorry, was having another one of those contractions. They've been a lot worse today."

Ashley drummed her fingernails on the metal bar running through the armrest of her folding chair. "Are these still those Baxter-Hick contractions?" she asked.

"Braxton-Hicks," Miley said, correcting her friend politely, "and yeah."

"How do you know?"

Miley thought about that for a minute. "I don't think they feel like a regular contraction is supposed to," she finally said in a rather unconvincing manner.

"What, based on your years of experience birthing children?" asked Ashley facetiously.

Miley thought for a few seconds, then she said, "You got a point there. And they _have_ been worse today."

"Miley, you've had a half dozen that I noticed since this game started, and it's just in the fourth inning. Maybe we should get Lilly and tell her."

Miley shook her head. "Uh uh. She's havin' a great time out there, and I like watchin' her play. If I'm still havin' contractions this much when the game's over, then I might have her take me. Hey, do you mind to keep track of how many minutes are between contractions?"

"Sure," said Ashley, a worried look on her face. That worry only intensified as she saw Miley wince and close her eyes. She watched her friend squeeze the arms of her folding chair, gripping them so tightly that her knuckles turned a shade of alabaster. "Miley?" Ashley asked quietly, leaning in closer. She could see sweat forming on Miley's forehead, much more than would be expected from her after living in California over eleven years now. "Miley?" Ashley said, reaching out to gently touch Miley's left forearm.

"Get... Lilly..." Miley managed to get out through clenched teeth, unable to so much as open her eyes.

"Shit," swore Ashley softly. She turned to her husband and said, "Oliver! I need you to go get—"

"What's going on?" said a familiar voice, approaching at a trot. Ashley turned to see Lilly stop beside Miley and kneel beside her wife; she had forgotten that Lilly probably knew something was wrong as soon as Miley did. Lilly had added a few stripes of blue and pink to her hair today, and the colors together with her hair being put up in a ponytail made her look even younger than her twenty-three years. "Miley, honey, what's wrong? Are the contractions getting worse?" she asked, reaching out with her right hand to tenderly caress her wife's red face while she used her left to hold Miley's clenched right fist. When no answer was immediately forthcoming, Lilly kissed the back of Miley's right hand and leaned her head down, resting it on Miley's forearm. "Breathe through it, sweetheart, just breathe. Just like we practiced, okay, Miles?"

Even through the stabbing waves of pain in her pelvis, Miley could dimly hear her wife's voice say, _I'm here Miley. I'm always going to be here with you._ Miley focused on those words, on that voice that was the sweetest music that she would ever hear, and she felt the pain begin to slowly ebb, withdrawing like the ocean's tide escaping from the beach. When she was able to open her eyes, her vision was blurry for a few seconds, but she still smiled when she gazed at the bright blob that was her Lilly. "Thank you," she said with a gasping voice, "for being here when I needed you."

Lilly smiled, her special smile that only came out for Miley. "Always," she said softly as Miley leaned her face against Lilly's left hand. "That must have been a bad one, huh, baby?"

Miley nodded. "The worst one yet. And they're coming faster, too."

The two young women stared into each other's eyes for several seconds before Lilly said with a firm voice, "Okay. We're going." She turned to look up at Oliver, who was now standing beside them. "Will you get my stuff for me, Oliver?" Lilly asked with misty eyes. She looked back down at her Miley and said, "Because I think we're about to become mommies."

"Okay, help me up," said Miley, shifting around in the folding chair.

"Nope," said Lilly, shaking her head but still smiling. Before Miley could protest, she added, "Not until I bring the car over here, so you don't have to walk so far." She kissed Miley on the lips quickly, then she jumped backward, skipping once as she turned and took off at a run, heading toward the parking lot.

"Doesn't she need her keys?" asked Oliver, watching as Lilly hurdled a fence easily.

"Electric locks," Miley said, likewise watching Lilly run, blonde ponytail bobbing furiously from side to side as her wife's strong legs carried her to their car at a full sprint. "Just need the keypad codes to open the doors and start the car."

"Ahhh," said Oliver, nodding slowly. "You know, if two of my friends ever let me _drive_ their car, I might know these things!"

Ashley took Oliver's hand and purred, "I let you drive _my_ car, baby." With a sultry stare, she added, "Any... way... you... like..."

Miley turned to look at Ashley and Oliver, drawing closer to each other. "Ya'll just don't get embarrassed much anymore, do you?" she asked, smiling as she shaded her eyes due to the sun's glare.

"Just trying to return the favor," replied Ashley smoothly. "For all the times you and Lilly embarrassed the shit out of us."

The squeal of tires coming to an abrupt halt drew everyone's attention away. By the time Miley had turned her head, Lilly was already out of the pearl Tesla Sedan and running toward the three of them. Miley stood awkwardly with Oliver's help, only to stop as another contraction hit. She winced as she tried to concentrate on Lilly's face, managing to ignore part of the pain as she reached out and took Lilly's hand. "Not too fast," she hissed out before Lilly could take off at a run, most likely towing Miley along behind her.

"Do I need to carry you?" Lilly asked, her face entirely serious as she assessed Miley's condition.

"No," said Miley quickly, shaking her head. She knew Lilly could pick her up and carry her, but that was before pregnancy and an extra twenty-one pounds. "I can make it to the car, Lil. No need for you to hurt yourself trying to carry me." _Even though you just might be able to do it, and that's hot. But hurting yourself isn't._

Lilly's face clearly showed her concern for her best friend, but she smiled and said, "Okay, Miles." She put her arm around Miley and helped support her as they hurried to the pearl sedan. Lilly opened the passenger door for Miley and helped her wife carefully down into her seat, then she closed the door and jumped onto the hood, sliding across it like a kid playing in the park to get to her side of the car. She opened the door and dropped down into the seat, studiously avoiding Miley's chastising glare. "Oh, come on," she said before she put the car into gear, "You thought it was cute, and you know it." Without waiting for a reply, she pressed down on the gas pedal, sending the car forward at a brisk pace.

Miley held her gaze on Lilly's face for several moments. Even with her hair pulled back, sweat on her head and a smidgen of dirt on her cheek, there was no hiding her wife's beauty. "I think _you're_ cute," Miley finally said, mirroring Lilly's smile as it spread across the blonde girl's face. She reached over and lovingly laid her hand on Lilly's bare thigh. "You ready to have a baby today, sweetheart?" she asked softly.

Lilly felt her heart skip a beat or two, and a giddy laugh escaped her pink lips. She glanced at Miley and said, "More than anything on earth, girlfriend."

Before she could reply, Miley froze as she felt another contraction building from deep inside. This one was incredibly painful, much more so than the others. She gasped in pain, and immediately she felt Lilly's fingers close around her own. She gripped Lilly's hand tightly, squeezing so hard that she knew it was hurting Lilly, but Lilly never made a sound or attempted to pull away. After long, agonizing seconds Miley finally eased her crushing grip on her wife. "That was the worst one yet, Lilly," she said. The insides of her thighs were tingling from the crushing pain that was still receding, leaving a residual feeling like warm water running between her legs. Panicked, Miley pulled up her skirt and stuck her hand between her legs, shivering when she felt warm liquid on her fingertips.

She slowly withdrew her fingers, horrified at the possibility of seeing blood but knowing that she had to see. When she saw only clear fluid, she released her pent-up breath with obvious relief. "I think my water just broke," Miley said, her voice shaky. "How far away are we?"

Lilly cut the car sharply right, nearly sideswiping a parked car as she pulled beneath the overhang outside the emergency department. "We're here," said Lilly proudly. She hopped out of the car and opened Miley's door, kneeling down as she said, "Let me get a wheelchair for you, Miles. I don't want you trying to walk."

Miley's face was downcast as she looked into Lilly's eyes and softly said, "What if I ruined the seat? I mean, we just got this car a few months ago."

"Miley!" said Lilly quickly as she reached out and took Miley's hand. "It's just a car. A _thing._ It doesn't matter compared to you or our baby. We can probably clean it or cover it up, and if we can't, they I'll _buy_ you a new car just like this one, okay?"

Miley smiled, sweat visible on her forehead as an errant strand of curly hair dangled down in front of her eyes. "I love you, you know that?"

"I love—"

"Even though you put this Mini-Lilly inside me that feels like she's tryin' to tear her way out!"

Lilly didn't whether to laugh, cry or apologize at her best friend's attempt to quell the anxiety building inside both of them. It was just like Miley to try and calm Lilly down when a situation was threatening to overwhelm her, and Lilly couldn't have appreciated that concern any more than she did at this very moment. "You get to do the same to me one day, Miles," she said as her eyes filled with tears, but a smile spread across her face.

As a trio of emergency room staff reached them with a wheelchair, Miley quietly asked Lilly, "Help me up?"

Lilly's smile, which Miley didn't think could have gotten any brighter, managed to do so. "Always," she said, taking both of Miley's hands in her own and pulling her wife to her feet. The two of them walked the few steps to the wheelchair, with Lilly ready to grab Miley if she were to have another powerful contraction, but they reached the wheelchair easily. "Go ahead and park the car, honey," Miley said. "I'll wait on you."

"You sure?" asked Lilly, worried that something might happen between them taking Miley inside and her coming back from parking the car.

"Promise," Miley whispered.

"Okay," Lilly softly replied. "I'll hurry." She turned and closed Miley's door, then she ran around the car and hopped back into the driver's seat, taking off silently as the electric car moved through the circular turnaround and went back into the parking lot.

"Quiet car," said one of the hospital workers, a man who didn't appear to be much older than Miley or Lilly.

"Electric," said Miley, still watching Lilly as she moved through the parking lot, searching for a parking place. Knowing Lilly, she'd come back at a full run. Suddenly Miley felt herself being turned around. "Hey!" she said, loudly. "What's the big idea?" she asked, staring up at the man and two women with her.

"We need to get you inside," said the nurse. Or at least that was what Miley had decided she was.

"Uh uh," she said defiantly. "I promised my wife that I'd wait on her, and that's what I'm doin'. So this wheelchair isn't goin' anywhere until she's with me." However, Miley's resolve suffered a serious blow when another painful contraction hit. She nearly doubled over with the force of her body's contractions, and she tried to send Lilly a mental message to hurry. She fumbled along the side of the wheelchair, finding a brake and throwing it right before they tried to push the wheelchair forward.

"Dammit, is the brake on?" the man said angrily.

"Yes, she's got her hand on it!"

Miley felt fingers try to pry her hand away from the brake lever, but she was gripping it so tightly that only something as powerful as either a bomb or Lilly's tender touch could have relaxed her hold. _Not letting go until you're here, Lilly. Not letting go..._

"I'm here, Miley!" called out Lilly, her voice ululating in a way that told Miley immediately that she was running as fast as she could. Miley released her grip on the brake lever, letting the wheelchair surge forward now that she and Lilly were together. She felt warm, sweaty fingers take her own in their grasp, and she felt the contraction start to recede. It was time.

"Our doctor is Dr. Jensen," said Lilly as they rushed into the back hall of the emergency department. "I left her a message while we driving in."

"Yes ma'am, she's waiting for you two up in OB," said one of the nurses as she draped a blanket across Miley's waist and legs. "And she said for us to get your butts up there yesterday."

Lilly found herself having to essentially jog to keep pace with the nurse pushing Miley's wheelchair, but she wasn't leaving Miley's side. As Miley had another contraction hit, Lilly braced herself for the astonishingly powerful grip that her wife applied to her hand, much more powerful than Miley could typically manage; still, she gladly accepted the pain, hoping that in some way her hurting could alleviate some of Miley's agony from the contractions.

As the wide double doors to the Obstetrics department swung open at their approach, Lilly saw Dr. Jensen standing at the nurses' station. She stood as soon as she saw the convoy approaching, pointing to a door and then following them into an usually wide birthing room. When they had taken their tour several months ago, Lilly had been impressed by the attention paid to details in the birthing rooms as well as by the surprising elegance in its furnishings. Of course, the generous two-million-dollar donation made to the Birthing Center by Hannah and Lola Montana last year had gone a long way to making the upgrades of the birthing rooms happen.

Lilly snapped her attention back to Miley, now with her shirt spotted with sweat in several places. She helped Miley stand as the nurses cleared the bed, leaving just a clean white and green sheet on it. Miley sat back on the bed, leaning her head back and clutching Lilly's hand forcefully as another contraction ripped through her. "AH!" Miley yelped, jerking so suddenly that it startled Lilly.

"We've got blood!" called out one nurse looking down at the wheelchair. As Dr. Jensen leaned over to look, she said something to another nurse that Lilly didn't catch; that nurse went running out of the room instantly.

"What does that mean?" yelled Lilly, her anxiety rising steadily. "The blood, what's that mean?"

"It means we've got to get this little girl out of here," said Dr. Jensen as she took a package of sterile gloves that one of the nurses handed her. "Thankfully, it looks like all of us are in agreement with that, including little Baby Truscott."

The nurse who had run out of the room returned, pushing a large cart covered with a blue sterile cover. She carefully removed the cover, revealing an intimidating array of metal and plastic instruments that made Lilly instantly queasy. She quickly looked down, seeing genuine fear, not just pain, in her wife's bright blue eyes as Miley stared up at Lilly like a frightened animal caught in a spotlight. "It's going to be okay, Miles," she said. "I'm right here, we're at the hospital, they can handle anything that comes up."

"Don't leave me, Lilly," gasped Miley fearfully. She reached over with her left arm and gripped Lilly's shoulder. "No matter what happens, please don't leave me!" she begged, almost crying in the grip of emotions too numerous to count.

Lilly shook her head as she forced herself to smile despite the legion of possibilities flashing through her mind, some wonderful but many terrifying. "I'll never leave you, Miles," she said as she leaned down and kissed Miley on her sweaty forehead. "No matter what. I promise."

Lilly was still looking into Miley's frantic eyes when she heard Dr. Jensen practically snarl, "They've been married for seven years and are more in love with each other than you and whatever piece of ass you're sleeping with this week! If you've got a problem with my patients or helping with this birth, then get the _fuck_ out of here right this second; otherwise, wipe that expression off your face and do your _damn job!"_

Lilly chose to stay focused on Miley and not look up to see whom their doctor had just castigated in front of the entire room. Despite her pain, Miley managed to smile and giggle softly, prompting Lilly to do the same. The humor was a blessed relief from the accelerating contractions and the excruciating pain they brought with them.

"Okay Miley, I need to check you and see how dilated you are," Dr. Jensen said. Miley slid down the bed, stopping when she simultaneously felt someone's hands on her legs and heard Dr. Jensen say, "That's good." She closed her eyes as she felt the doctor's fingers gently enter her, telling herself that this was necessary, that it had to be done for their baby.

"She's at least ten centimeters and fully effaced," said the doctor smartly. "Get the cart over here."

Lilly glanced down in time to see Dr. Jensen snap off a glove covered with blood and quickly toss it into a waste receptacle on the side of the cart. She immediately looked back down at Miley, but as she looked at Miley's face, she knew that Miley could tell something wasn't exactly right. "What is it?" Miley asked, her voice nearly a whisper, and the painful uncertainty in that voice made Lilly want to break down in tears right there.

"There's..." she started, then she stopped to swipe at a tear running down her cheek with her left hand. "There's some blood, Miley."

"How much blood?" Miley asked as the color seemed to drain out of her face.

Lilly gave up on wiping at the tears, because now they were flowing more freely. "I don't know, honey, I couldn't really tell, I just saw for a second—"

"Miley!" said Dr. Jensen, her voice steady and calm, and both Lilly and Miley drew strength from her confidence. "I need you to put your feet here, where the nurses are moving them—okay, good, good—now I need you to sit up, because you can push better that way."

Miley did just that, with Lilly staying true to her word and standing at Miley's side, still holding her right hand with both of her own. Both of them knew that there would be no time for any anesthesia at this point.

"Okay, now the next contraction you have, I'm going to tell you to _push_, okay?"

Miley nodded, locking eyes with the doctor she and Lilly trusted with the life of their baby.

"And when you push, you need to keep pushing while we count to ten. You think you can do that?"

"Do I have a choice?" Miley gasped, trying to sound humorous, but no one laughed. Lilly risked another glance at the foot of the bed, and she saw a stain of blood on Dr. Jensen's blue surgical gown. "Shit, I feel one coming, Lilly," Miley gasped. "It's com—"

"Alright, now PUSH, Miley! Count for her Lilly, one, two..."

"Three... four... five..." Lilly helpfully counted, grateful for the chance to concentrate on anything other than how much pain Miley was in, and she hadn't even had a chance to get an epidural or anything—

"Good, keep pushing, keep pushing..."

"Six... seven... eight..." —Not to mention how there was more blood that she could see on the doctor's gown now, so much that it was threatening to turn the blue into more of a morbid purple at the center of her chest—

"I'm going to start stretching you now, Miley, to try and keep you from tearing—"

"Nine... ten!"

"—So if you feel my fingers moving around, that's what I'm trying to do. Hopefully we can keep from having to do an episiotomy on you."

Miley tipped her head back and gasped in a deep breath of cool air. Before she could lift her head back up, though, she feel something even more wonderful that the fresh air—the tender lips of her Lilly. "You're doing it, Miley," Lilly said softly against her wife's lips. "You're doing great, honey."

"It hurts, Lilly," Miley said in a voice that was as much a whimper as anything else. "It feels like everything's turnin' inside out, and it hurts more than anything I've ever felt!"

Lilly carefully kissed each of Miley's cheeks, taking away as many of the salty tears as she could before she pressed her lips against Miley's forehead, now surprisingly cool but still slick with sweat. "Share it with me, Miley," she murmured against her best friend's skin. "Let me take some of the pain away, baby." When Lilly pulled back, she saw Miley looking up at her with eyes both apprehensive and hopeful.

"Can you—" Miley began, stopping as Lilly pressed her forehead against Miley's, letting the two pairs of steely blue eyes search deeply into each other. Miley's eyes snapped closed as another contraction began, with yet another wave of pain surging through her aching body.

"Look at me, Miley," Lilly whispered as somewhere behind her she could one of the nurses slowly counting through the contraction. "Look in my eyes," she continued, smiling when Miley's eyes opened but nearly crying at the pain she could see in those tender blue eyes. "Share it with me," she whispered, "let me help you, Miley."

It might have just been Miley's imagination, or maybe some fevered dream brought on by the wracking pain she was experiencing, but Miley could feel her pain lessening slightly. She still hurt terribly, but it became bearable, something that suddenly didn't seem as impossible to bear, not with Lilly right here beside her. She dimly registered someone saying something to her, someone who wasn't Lilly, and she had to force herself to hear their voice.

"—You have to push, Miley!"

Dr. Jensen. Saying something about pushing, and the baby's heart rate. And... something else?

"Miley, do you hear me? I said, this baby has to come out _now!_ If you can't help push her out, then we're going to have to take you for an emergency C-section!"

Lilly's soothing voice came through as clear as the ringing of a bell, cutting through the fog of pain that her mind had created to protect itself. _You can do this, Miley,_ it said. _Just a few more pushes, and she's here._ A pause, and then, _WE can do this, honey, we can do it together._ Miley smiled. Her best friend, her wife, was right. As long as Lilly was here with her, they could do anything.

As the next contraction began to build, she focused her will, pouring all the strength and passion held in her love for Lilly into determination. She was going to have this baby, and she was going to have her now.

"Okay, Miley, push!" said someone Not Lilly.

Miley braced herself and pushed, squeezing Lilly's hand with her right as hard as she could while she pushed, trying to help their baby escape to the new world awaiting her. Her left hand slipped off the railing, flailing for an interminable second before someone's hand took it carefully, squeezing with a strength that Miley used to brace herself. She smiled and offered silent thanks for the support, because words were beyond her at the moment. Even opening her eyes would have taken effort, and for now all her strength was focused on one task.

"She's crowning!" said an excited Not Lilly, sounding happy.

"You're doing it, Miley!" Lilly added, and the sound of her amazingly beautiful voice lent Miley even more strength, letting her increase her efforts beyond what she thought possible. She felt something pass through her, and suddenly most of the excruciating pain disappeared. She gasped as the agony that had been her other companion for the last hour was almost immediately gone, leaving a void that made her ache for the pain once more, just for a brief moment.

"How is she?" Miley weakly gasped, knowing Lilly would understand her even if the words were too soft to be audible. There was a pause, and during that pause Miley felt her heart break out of fear for their child. She could feel Lilly's terror just as she could feel her own, adding to each other and threatening to overwhelm them both, but then the sound of a soft mewling voice rang out. It was weak at first, but then it became louder, stronger as it cried out, angry and scared and needy all at once.

"She's got your voice," Lilly said in a near-whisper so as not to drown out their daughter's first cries, and Miley laughed at how right her partner was.

"Yeah, well, sounds like she's got your temper, too," Miley replied, making Lilly laugh as well. The two of them looked into each other's eyes as Miley moved her left hand to cup Lilly's cheek as they kissed.

"The cord clamp!" someone cried out, and Miley's head shot up as Lilly's whirled around, Miley's head just missing Lilly's chin. There was a sudden flurry of activity around the plastic tray where their baby lay, and Dr. Jensen's arms indicated she was instantly busy doing something. Deep inside Miley felt something ache, and she could tell Lilly felt it too.

"Get her to the NICU and start an umbilical line; tell the lab to get me some blood stat!" Dr. Jensen turned to face Miley and Lilly as everyone else except one nurse ran out of the room, wheeling the tray holding their newborn child with them. "Get me some Monsel's solution," Dr. Jensen said to the remaining nurse as she walked over to stand next to Miley and Lilly, both now terrified beyond words. "She lost some blood," the doctor said, and despite her best efforts to conceal her own concern, that worry came through in her wide eyes. "One of the cord clamps came off, but we were finally able to reclamp it and stop any further bleeding. She's going to need some blood, and the NICU's the best place to give it to her."

Lilly swallowed painfully, her throat dry as ashes as she slowly asked, "Will... will she make it?" Tears ran down her cheeks as the words left her lips. _No! This isn't supposed to happen this way! Now it's supposed to be easy, with us smiling down at our daughter and congratulating each other on being new mothers while talking about whose nose she had and which one of us she most resembles._ Inside she could feel Miley's turmoil burning a hole in her stomach, and Lilly knew that right now she needed to be a source of strength for the woman she loved.

As Lilly embraced Miley, Dr. Jensen said, "We got the bleeding stopped, and she's a fighter, that's obvious already. She's still awake and going strong, so she's got a good chance." Her voice was kind, if a bit clinical, but the two young women knew that their doctor wanted to be honest with them, not make false promises or condescending statements. "You're still bleeding, Miley, and we've got to get that stopped first," the doctor said, and now she had moved back to the foot of the bed. "Okay, the placenta's coming out now," she said, looking down between Miley's legs once more. The nurse handed her a metal basin, which she handed back just seconds later. The nurse took that basin and exchanged it with a cup which she handed to the doctor. "This goop I'm getting ready to put in you will help stop the bleeding, okay, Miley? As soon as the bleeding stops, then I'll have you two taken to the NICU so you can see your baby."

Miley didn't even feel the cold, pasty material going in, she was so numb from the last few minutes. She looked up into Lilly's eyes, wide with both worry and resolve, and suddenly Miley felt something inside her give way. She began sobbing as tears streamed forth; within a second Lilly was on the bed beside her, sitting next to her and holding her as she broke down, body shaking as she cried uncontrollably. "We didn't..." she started, only to be stopped by more wracking sobs. "We didn't even get to hold her," she finished painfully, hanging onto Lilly as tightly as possible.

"We will, Miley, we will," Lilly promised. "No matter what, we'll get to hold her together."

Miley looked into Lilly's red-rimmed eyes of blue, glistening with tears just as her own were. "What if—"

"Shhh," Lilly whispered. She rocked Miley back and forth, trying to offer some comfort to her wife. "If it happens, then we deal with it and go on. We deal with it together. Remember?"

Miley nodded, and Lilly could feel the motion against her shoulder. "Together," Miley repeated, as if it were a magic word brimming with the power to make everything right again.

"But she's going to make it, honey," said Lilly soothingly. "Because she's a fighter just like her moms, and she's wanting to see us as much as we want to see her." Lilly pulled her head back slightly, enough to look into Miley's teary eyes. "She wants to put faces to those voices she's listened to for all these months."

"I want to see her," Miley said. "I need to—" She swallowed, then she said, "I need to hold her, just... just in case. She needs both of her mommies to hold her."

Lilly felt tears form again. She hadn't thought there were any tears left, but Miley's honest statement reflected what she had been thinking in her heart. "You're right," she said to her wife. "When can we walk down there?" she asked Dr. Jensen.

The doctor stood. Thankfully the blood-stained gown was gone; Lilly didn't think she could have handled seeing it again. "Miley is in no shape to be walking anywhere. She's still bleeding, and if this doesn't stop it, I might have to take her to surgery."

"Then I won't walk!" Miley said, clutching onto Lilly's wrist. "Lilly can push me in a wheelchair!"

Lilly started to try and talk some sense into Miley, but when she saw the tears still running from her wife's sad eyes, she knew that she had to do this for Miley. "But what if you start bleeding again?" Lilly asked, already knowing that she was going to do it for her best friend but still afraid at what might happen.

Miley put her hand atop Lilly's. "You're not gonna lose me, Lilly Bear. I promise."

Lilly nodded. Miley understood what she was afraid of, the one thing that Lilly feared more than losing their baby. "Okay."

Minutes later Lilly was pushing a wheelchair down a long hallway connecting the Obstetrics wing and the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. "How are you feeling?" she asked Miley, who was shifting uncomfortably in the chair.

"Like someone stuffed a dozen pads into a diaper and then put it on me," she grumbled. "Hey, there's the door."

Lilly stopped the wheelchair and knocked on the door. After a few seconds, a nurse opened the door slowly. "Are you the Truscotts?" she asked, looking them over.

"Yes," said Lilly. "Can... can we see our baby?"

"We need to hold her," added Miley sadly. "You know, in case... in case she doesn't make it."

"Come on in," said the nurse, holding the door open for them. She showed them where a scrub sink was and helped them wash their hands. "I'm sorry, but we don't allow wheelchairs in the NICU."

Miley and Lilly looked at each other. Without any debate or discussion, Lilly took Miley's hands and helped her wife to her unsteady feet, supporting Miley with her arm as they took turns washing their hands thoroughly. They then slowly followed the nurse through a row of tiny infants in warmers and incubators, Miley leaning on Lilly as they shuffled their way down the path. They stopped at the far end of the row, and the nurse stepped away as Miley and Lilly moved closer, peering down over a baby warmer holding a sleeping newborn girl. Compared to the other infants they had glanced at here in the NICU, their daughter was quite large, and while it might have been the heat lamps, her skin looked healthy. As they watched her tiny chest rise and fall with each breath, the two of them moved even closer, hugging each other tightly.

"She looks healthy," said Miley, her voice hopeful but worried.

"She looks like you," replied Lilly. She turned to the nurse. "How's she doing?" she asked quickly, hoping she didn't sound too much like a babbling idiot. "I mean, is she..."

The nurse smiled, and for the second time in the last ten seconds Lilly felt her heart lift. "She's doing much better," the nurse said. "We only had to give her a little blood. You two have got a real fighter on your hands. She's a tough one."

"Good thing, the way her momma falls all the time," Lilly teased, and right now it felt indescribably good to tease Miley, just like how things had always been. It was as if a crushing weight had been taken off their chests, and now they could breathe normally again.

"I wonder if she's going to be as good an athlete as you are," Miley asked absently, not really expecting an answer. "She's got the same little chubby arms you did when you were a baby."

Lilly's mouth opened in shock, her lips pursed into an O-shape. "Where did you see my baby pictures at?" she asked.

Miley grinned at her best friend as she replied, "Your mom showed me some the other day. And you were just adorable, Lil, you and your little fat arms and fat legs!"

A soft cry drew their attention back to the warmer. Plump little legs began to kick the air as their daughter's mouth opened, and another tiny cry came out. At the sound of that cry, Miley instinctively reached for the baby, pausing long enough to look at the nurse standing behind them. "Can I—?"

"It's your baby," the nurse replied with a smile. "Let me get you a chair and a blanket."

As Miley reached into the warmer, she felt Lilly's hands on her back, lightly pressing against her as she leaned forward to get a better look, no doubt. She also felt a swelling in her breasts, different than any other feeling she had ever experienced, but she knew what it signified. _It's amazing how our bodies do some things without us ever knowing how or why. Like knowing how to feed a baby... or falling in love with your best friend._ As Miley's fingers gently brushed against their daughter, she felt as much as heard Lilly whisper against her ear, "I love you, Miley Truscott, and nothing could ever match everything that you've given to me."

Miley turned and gave Lilly a kiss, lingering for a few seconds as she felt Lilly's arms wrap around her back. "I think she's hungry," Miley whispered, scooping her fingers and hands beneath the infant and carefully lifting her and her soft pink blanket up.

"Here's a rocker," said the nurse as she locked the wheels on the large chair. She handed Lilly a large white blanket. "And you might want to cover her up so she stays warm. I got you two one of the big rockers, too, so you can both sit down and hold her." She smiled and stepped away, giving them their privacy.

Lilly covered their daughter up with the blanket as Miley held her and carefully sat down in the rocking chair. Sure enough, there seemed to be enough room for Lilly to sit beside them. "Lilly Bear?" she said as she looked up at Lilly, watching mother and baby with undisguised joy.

"Yeah, Miles?" Lilly seemed focused on Miley holding their baby, a smile of countless dreams realized reflected on her face.

"Come sit with us," said Miley, patting the seat beside her. "There's room."

Lilly gingerly sat down, being very careful not to bump either Miley or their daughter as she did so. The nurse returned with a bigger blanket, one large enough to cover all three of them as they sat and slowly rocked. Lilly handed over the white blanket, then she draped the larger blanket over them as their daughter began to fuss and cry.

"Oh, she's hungry just like her mommy too!" said Miley in a gentle, soothing voice, giving Lilly a sly glance out of the corner of her eye. Since Lilly had covered them with the blanket, Miley simply lifted up her shirt, letting Lilly carefully remove it while she shifted the baby around from arm to arm to allow Lilly to remove her shirt and bra. Once that was done, she lifted their child to her left breast, grinning as the baby opened her mouth when her mother's nipple brushed against it, then latching on and greedily sucking away as soon as she was set.

Lilly leaned against her family, holding Miley's bare back with her left arm and her baby's bare back with her right hand while keeping the blanket raised with both her left hand, which gripped one corner of the blanket, and her right arm. She stared at her wife feeding their child with a mixture of pride, joy and reverence, enthralled at how beautiful they looked together despite it being the first time for either of them. "That's just amazing," she said, more to herself than to Miley. Miley looked her way, and Lilly clarified, "Just how she knows to do that, and how your body knows what to do too."

"You tend to have a slightly different use for these," Miley said, flashing one of her more seductive smiles at Lilly.

"Yeah," Lilly admitted, unable to keep from smiling or blushing slightly. "But this little girl comes first from now on."

"No," Miley said quietly. She reached down with her right hand and gently gripped Lilly's bare left thigh, sending chills of excitement up Lilly's leg. "It's not a competition, honey. You both can have me, because you both get me in different ways."

Lilly felt a hammering in her heart quicken. How was it that Miley could be here, holding their baby not an hour after she was born, and _still _she could turn Lilly on with the simplest touch and smile? _Because I love her, and because she loves me._ "How long do we, um, have to, you know, wait?" Lilly finally asked in a very, very soft voice.

Miley laughed, her deep, rich, sexy laugh that sent even more tingles down Lilly's spine. "We'll ask Dr. Jensen, but I bet it'll be a few weeks before you can touch me down there," she said as she nuzzled her lips against Lilly's neck. "But I can still touch you," she added, punctuating her statement with a lingering kiss beneath Lilly's left ear. "And you can touch me other places, too."

"What other places?" asked Lilly, breathing a bit more heavily as she likewise leaned in and began running her lips over Miley's bare right shoulder. She had to lean carefully to not push against their daughter, but she managed. As she kissed Miley's collarbone, she giggled and rested her head against Miley's burning skin. "I think I'm a freak," she whispered.

"Why?" Miley whispered back.

"Because you just had a baby, and I'm not only thinking about making love to you but getting incredibly turned on by watching you feed her."

Miley smiled and looked into Lilly's eyes, a deep cobalt in the dim lighting of the NICU. "You're not a freak, Lilly. You're a woman in love, and it's okay to be turned on by your wife regardless of the circumstances." Seeing a lingering doubt, Miley added, "Being a mother to our daughter is the second-most natural thing I could ever do, second only to fallin' in love with you, Lilly."

They kissed softly, then Lilly said, "I can't wait until I can feed your daughter like you're feeding mine. I know that sounds like I'm jealous, but I can't help what I feel."

"Hey," Miley said, lifting Lilly's face up from where she had lowered her gaze. "There's nothing to be jealous about, Lilly. I'm going to pump so you get as much time feeding her as I do. I want Brooke to get used to both her mommies feeding her."

Lilly beamed at Miley's last sentence. "You called her Brooke," she said. "Does that mean you're over being superstitious, since you're using her name? Not afraid of jinxing anything now?"

"Nope," Miley said, slowly shaking her head. "I think this little girl is gonna be with us for the long haul now." Soft cries from beneath the cover drew both women's attention to their daughter, who had let go and was fussing about something. "What's the matter, baby?" Miley tickled their daughter under her baby chin, but that didn't halt her cries.

"I know what she wants," Lilly said proudly. "She's like me, remember?"

"And? What's she want, hon?"

Lilly smiled. "Seconds." She helped Miley rotate Brooke, giggling when their daughter opened her blue-gray eyes at Lilly's touch on her head.

"She knows you," Miley said confidently as Lilly held Brooke's head up just enough to brush Miley's left nipple across their baby's lips. As Brooke sucked once before finally getting a good grip, Miley and Lilly both giggled at how irritated she got briefly before finding her target. "My gosh, she really does eat like you," said Miley with a grin.

Lilly didn't say anything; instead she just leaned against Miley, holding her wife and their new daughter and considering just how blessed her life had been. She closed her eyes momentarily, more to rest than to sleep, but she almost immediately began drifting off.

"Anywhere you want."

"What?" Lilly said sleepily. "What'd you say, Miles?"

Miley kissed Lilly on top of her head. "You asked me what other places you could touch me, and I said, 'Anywhere you want,' other than where I need to heal."

"Mmmm, I'm liking my options," said Lilly. "But I think I can wait until we get home."

Miley's hot breath tickled Lilly's ear, making her shiver before Miley whispered, "But who says I can?" She kissed Lilly on her earlobe, sucking it lightly, then she whispered, "I'm on such a natural high right now, honey, that I want to make you feel as amazing as I do at this very moment."

"Excuse me," said the nurse that had helped them previously. Miley and Lilly looked up but didn't move out of their close embrace. "I think there are some people at the observation window of the regular nursery who want to see your new daughter."

"Okay," said Miley with a grin. Brooke had stopped sucking, and when she looked down Miley saw that their daughter was fast asleep. "Here," she said, handing her carefully to Lilly along with the smaller blanket wrapped around the baby. As Lilly took Brooke and cradled her to her chest, whispering sweet words of love into her tiny ears, Miley slipped her bra and shirt back on beneath the cover of the larger blanket. Once she was dressed, she moved the big blanket, tossing it on the large seat where she had been sitting. "Where's the regular nursery?" Miley asked the nurse as she helped Lilly stand up.

Miley felt her heart soar at seeing the look of joy on Lilly's face as she held their first child. _I made her that happy. I gave her that child. And even though I was scared out of my mind earlier, I'd do it again and again for her, as many as she wanted._ She could feel the love warming her heart, both her own love for Lilly and their baby and the love coming from her wife, matching and magnifying the emotions inside her heart.

Lilly looked up as they followed the nurse through the NICU. "I want to do this as soon as we can, Miley,"

"Do what, hon?" Miley found herself feeling surprisingly good, if very sore in her pelvis and thighs. Since she had gotten used to carrying around the extra weight of her pregnancy, having much of that gone at once made her feel like she was walking on air.

As they passed through a sliding door, Lilly said, "Have your baby, like you had mine. That's what I want to do."

Miley put her arm around Lilly, smiling down at their child, wrapped snugly in the soft blanket as Lilly carried her. "We need to wait, Lilly, remember? We decided that two years was a good time between our first two. That'll give us time to bond with Brookie and sort of figure out how to do this whole parenting thing."

"Hah! You think we can figure it out in two years?"

"I was being optimistic."

"More like delusional."

Miley grinned. How did she ever get so lucky as to marry her best friend? "Want to guess what I'm thinkin'?"

"Ummm... That we're missing the half price sale on shoes at Buckle Down today?"

Miley whirled her head around. "Mother of my child say what?" she spit out. "Half price?"

"Oh, did I say half price?" stammered Lilly, suddenly looking guilty. "Oh, I meant, uh..." Darn it. She couldn't lie to Miley, not even a little white one to get out of trouble. "Well, there's always next week!" she said cheerily.

"Next week ain't half price," said Miley seriously.

Lilly lit up as an idea hit her. "No, but we can buy Brooke her first pair of shoes!" she said quickly.

Miley smiled broadly. "I like the sound of that plan, Lilly Bear. Nice save."

"Thank you," Lilly said proudly as they walked into the brightly lit sitting room, where newborn babies could be shown off to visitors who watched them through a massive window making up an entire wall of the room. She started to say something else, but then she noticed the crowd of people standing on the other side of the window, all focused on the newborn baby in her arms. Oliver and Ashley were in the center, with Cassie Hughes and Sarah Sweet beside them. Jen Kittrell and her husband Lee were there as well, standing next to Jamie Escante and her girlfriend Gina Giles, both waving to the baby. On the other side of Oliver and Ashley were Lilly's parents Phil and Meredith Truscott with Ashley's mother Kimiyo. Mr. Corelli's head could be seen in the crowd, looking over the shoulders of Cassie and Sarah; as Lilly looked at him, he gave a thumbs-up to the new mothers.

"Wow," said Miley, waving to their crowd of observers as she and Lilly brought Brooke closer to the window. "Lots a' people, huh?"

"Yeah," said Lilly. She could detect the note of sadness in Miley's voice, although probably no one else could have noticed it. "I had Oliver call them first, Miley. It's just going to take a few hours to fly out here from Tennessee." She knew that Miley wished that her father and the rest of her family could have been here, but it just couldn't have been helped. "Come here," she said as she saw Miley's bottom lip quiver. She led Miley away from the window, taking a seat on a large love seat across the viewing room. This way everyone could still see them, but maybe they wouldn't be able to see Miley's tears when she started to cry. "What is it, honey? Because I know it's more than just your dad and all our sibs not being here."

Miley sighed, looking up and away as she rested her hands in Lilly's lap. "I guess... I guess it's just hit me that for so long I didn't have a mom in my family, and now _I'm_ the mom." She looked at Lilly and gave her a guilty grin. "Well, _we're_ the moms. It's a big step, I guess. I mean, no more just running off and doing whatever we want, whenever we want."

"No, now it's running off and doing whatever we want, whenever we want, with our baby," Lilly said, giving Miley a stern look before softening her expression. "Come on, Miley, when have we _ever_ been able to do that? I mean, our lives keep us busy! Between college and our other jobs we're pretty much on the run all the time. But you know what?"

Miley looked up, her visage glum. "What?"

"I love every second of it, because it's all worth it to spend my life with you," she finished, staring into those blue eyes she had dreamed about for as long as she could remember. "We're both taking some time off to get to know this little angel girl, remember?"

Miley grinned sheepishly. She _had_ forgotten, among all the turmoil of this day. "Maybe we can take her out with us in a couple of weeks," she said, knowing Lilly would understand the meaning behind her words.

"I think that would be perfect," said Lilly agreeably. "And when it's time for your next tour, we're going to be right there with you now that we don't have to worry about school."

"We're going to have to have some changes made to the tour bus," said Miley. "We need a sleeper crib for her, and a changing table, and—" Lilly's lips on her own put a stop to her rush of words.

"We've got the rest of our lives to get that taken care of, Miley," Lilly said. "So don't freak out about it, okay?"

Miley smiled. "Okay," she said. She reached a hand up to gently touch their daughter's adorable little nose, exactly like her own. "Can we go back to the room and lay down? I'm really tired," she said, yawning as she finished. "I mean, I did kinda have a baby today, you know?"

Lilly laughed, taking in how lovely Miley looked as she stretched, her hair long, loose and wild, her face glowing with love, her eyes bright and dancing. Even after the stress of today, she looked so full of life that it took Lilly's breath away.

"What the heck are you lookin' at?" Miley said as she noticed Lilly staring at her with utter devotion in her gaze.

"Just the most beautiful woman on earth," Lilly said as she turned around, waving to everyone at the window as she walked back into the nursery. "And the mother of my children," she called out over her shoulder as she felt as much as heard Miley running up behind her. "And the woman I love with all I am."

Miley put her arms around Lilly from behind, being careful to not lean or push against Lilly. "Excuse us," she said to the two nurses on duty. "Can we take her to our room for a while? We, uh, appreciate everyone bein' here for us, but I think after everything that's happened today we'd like to have some time with just the three of us."

"We need to have the NICU doctor come see her, but she's done great ever since she got that blood," said the nurse who had led them in earlier. "I think there's a chance she might get to stay with her mothers tonight in their room," she said with a friendly smile.

"Sounds like a plan to me," Miley said in a friendly way as Lilly carefully handed their baby back to the nurse. "About how long, do you think?"

"Probably an hour or so. Maybe two. It all depends on how quick the doctor gets here. And I think that your doctor was wanting to check on you again too, Mrs. Truscott."

"Dang it," Miley said. "I thought we were gonna be able to sneak off."

"Stop being silly," said Lilly, lightly poking Miley's arm. "You just had a baby today, Miley, and you need to be watched tonight too. After—" Lilly stopped abruptly, nearly clamping her hands over her mouth in a very literal way.

"After what?" asked Miley, her curiosity now piqued.

Lilly considered the various likelihoods of denying everything—which never seemed to work, not with Miley—coming up with a cover story with no opportunity to prepare—also not good odds—or choosing the right place to tell her best friend what image had popped into her head. "I'll tell you when we get back to the room, Miles," Lilly said, and by the tone of her voice Miley could tell that Lilly didn't want to go into any details right then.

"Okay," she said. "How, uh, do we get out of here?"

"Tracy will take you," said the nurse as her partner stood. "I'll take this little beauty back in there and change her. That'll distract everybody for quite a while, I think."

Within minutes Miley and Lilly were back in their birth room, although it was nearly unrecognizable from earlier. The instruments table was nowhere to be seen, all the towels and gowns had been picked up, the bed had been freshly made and everything smelled fresh and clean. One of the obstetrical nurses came in and checked Miley's pad; she was pleased when she saw that the bleeding had slowed down considerably, and she replaced the pads with significantly fewer than before, which Miley appreciated greatly. Finally the nurse left the room, promising that she'd find Dr. Jensen and have her check Miley before it got too late.

"Okay," said Miley as soon as the door had closed behind their nurse, "now spill. What is it that you didn't want to tell me earlier?"

Lilly sat down on the bed and moved to lie down beside Miley, propping herself up on her elbow as Miley assumed a matching position. "Earlier when you were in labor, there was..." She trailed off as she felt her eyes start to burn. She waved her hand in front of her face, trying to fan the tears away.

"What was it, honey?" asked Miley, now frightened by what Lilly had seen earlier.

"When Brooke was being born, there was... a lot of blood," Lilly finally said in a soft voice. "And every time I looked back down there, it seemed like there was more of it that I could see. I was scared, Miley. I was scared I was going to lose one of you, or even both of you."

"I can remember how scared you looked," Miley said, trying to recall anything other than the agony of her labor pains. "And I remember thinking that I just couldn't get her out. The doctor was saying something about taking me to surgery, and that she had to come out right then because something was going on. Something bad."

Lilly nodded. "The nurses were saying something about the cord being wrapped around her neck. I think it was choking her and that why everyone was freaking out."

"I didn't think I could do it, Lilly," said Miley, closing her eyes. "I felt so weak, so tired of the pain—oh honey, it hurt so bad, more than I had imagined, but then I felt you holding my right hand, giving me all the strength you could, and then I could feel someone else holding my left hand, and with both of you giving me that support, I gave that last push everything I had, and I prayed that it was gonna be enough."

"Well, it was," Lilly said. "I think you almost shot her out right against Dr. Jensen's—" She looked carefully at Miley. "What did you say about me holding your hand?"

"I said that I could feel you holding my hand. My right hand first, and then you held my left. And I could feel you giving me all that love and support you could; that was what helped me do it, honey."

"Miley, I was holding your right hand, but I didn't hold your left," Lilly said slowly. "Nobody was holding your left hand. Everyone was either at the foot of the bed or on my side of it."

"Somebody was holding my left hand," Miley insisted, "and I knew it had to be you because of how it felt, all warm and tingly, although it wasn't as warm as you usually..." Her voice trailed off as she considered what Lilly was telling her versus what she clearly remembered occurring, and suddenly the answer came to her. She could see the same realization light up Lilly's eyes just a second later.

"Thank you, Momma," Miley whispered as Lilly held her wife tightly against her chest, rocking her tenderly as they both cried tears of gratitude.

It took Lilly a minute or two before she could speak. Her throat was thick as she softly said, "Thank you, Mrs. Stewart. Thank you for being here today, for Miley, and for me, and for our little Brooke."

"I know what I want for her middle name, Lilly," Miley said immediately after Lilly's words. "Destiny. Like it was our destiny to be together and our destiny to have this child."

"Brooke Destiny Truscott," Lilly said aloud, taking in how the name sounded as she spoke it. "I like it, Miles."

Miley smiled as she looked out the window, the evening sun still shining but dimming as it sank to the horizon. "I think Momma likes it too, Lilly," she said, knowing that wherever her mother was, she was happy for them.

As the crowd of onlookers watched little Brooke Destiny Truscott get her first bath and diaper change, no one seemed to notice the air shimmer faintly over the baby girl. The nurses working with her both felt a slight chill in the air, but they dismissed it as nothing more than the hospital's quirky air conditioning. The only person who really took notice of the presence around her was a newborn baby girl, who opened her steely blue-gray eyes and blinked as she felt her grandmother's lips softly press against her forehead before slumber once again claimed her.

**Author's Afterword:** Okay, that chapter just wouldn't wait to come out! It took itself into a different direction than I had imagined more than once, but I love how it turned out. I had originally planned to include a few other bits and pieces in this chapter, but I decided to have this chapter focus on the basics of Miley, Lilly and their baby. Everything else will fit just fine into the next chapter, which I'll have up as soon as I can.

Oh, and I do have quite a bit to say about Miley's performance at the Teen Choice Awards, but I'll save that for another chapter. Let me sum it up by saying that one little dip does not a pole dance make. In fact, have these people calling her performance a pole dance ever _been_ to a strip club to see what a real one looks like? Give Miley a break! She used the pole to climb up onto the little cart, did one dip and then did nothing but hang onto the pole to keep from falling as the cart moved around. Big deal.

Okay, thanks again for being here for Miley and Lilly at this milestone in their lives, and I'll see you soon!

Jo


	20. Chapter 20: In Her Nature

**Author's Note:** Welcome back! Thanks for being patient waiting for this chapter. Work's been crazier than usual the last three weeks, and it's been tough putting my usual time into writing. And even though I'm not using their music for this chapter, I do so love the way The Killers write their songs, not compromising themselves for the sake of mass appeal but instead staying true to their original visions. Same for Garbage, whose music I _did_ use for this chapter. I could probably find a song for every chapter from just those two bands if I tried.

If you've forgotten the special dream in which Miley and Lilly foresaw being on Oprah to introduce Hannah and Lola's new baby Megan Montana, you can go back and relive that dream in Chapter 13 of "This Is Our Life." If you're ready to hit the story running, then by all means, read on! The birth of Brooke Destiny Truscott marks the end of the second part of this story, so now we're entering the third and final part with this chapter. I'd guess we're looking at another six to eight chapters including this one, but that could always change. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoy this chapter!

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist or publication mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo K.

Chapter 20: In Her Nature

_Seek to destroy 'cause they're scared of you_

_That's why they try to make a fool of you_

_So jealous of my pretty star_

_'Cause you've got soul inside your shattered heart_

-Garbage, "Right Between the Eyes"

As the pearl Tesla Sedan turned into the driveway, Lilly Truscott peeked into her rear-view mirror, grinning madly as she saw the purple, pink and silver infant carseat resting in the middle of the car's back seat. Its occupant was quietly sleeping, and if she had any recognition that she was at her home, she kept it to herself for the moment.

"You know, that's like the fortieth time you've checked on her," said Miley Truscott with a knowing smile on her own face.

Lilly turned to Miley and smiled even more widely, showing off her teeth as she beamed. "I know, and I still can't believe it!" she said brightly. She took Miley's hand as she shifted their car into Park, smiling at her wife of the last seven years as she said, "Miley, thank you again for giving me this amazing, wonderful, beautiful little girl."

As Lilly and Miley leaned in and kissed tenderly, Miley reached behind Lilly's head and pulled her best friend against her mouth tightly. She breathed in every bit of Lilly she could, savoring the taste of her lips and tongue and the smell of her skin and hair. "You're welcome," she replied softly, her voice deep and sweet like clover honey. "And I need to thank _you_, Lilly Bear, not just for gettin' me pregnant, but for puttin' up with my hormonal ass for the last ten months."

Lilly closed her eyes and leaned her head in closer, kissing Miley's neck gently. "Hormonal or not, your ass is awfully cute," she teased her wife, grinning against Miley's neck when she felt a playful pinch on her own behind.

"Yeah, right," Miley said self-deprecatingly, looking away. "I need to call that personal trainer and have him start coming over next week if he can. He wasn't supposed to come over until three weeks from now, but maybe he can—" Lilly's fingers on her jaw made Miley abruptly stop speaking; the gentle pull on her chin led Miley to slowly turn her face to look at Lilly, whose eyes were full of concern.

"What's going on, Miles?" Lilly carefully asked. "Did I upset you by saying that about your butt? Because I wasn't teasing or being sarcastic, honey, I really do love your butt." Mentally, Lilly kicked herself. _Miley's hormones were already flipped out while she was pregnant. Of course they're going to be even more crazy right after she's delivered our baby. Heck, I already knew she was worried about getting her pre-pregnancy body back; the last thing I need to do is make her more self-conscious about things. Way to go, Lilly. _

"Hey," Miley said as she turned back to look into Lilly's face, still smiling but a bit lackluster at the moment as the normally bubbly blonde continued to mentally chastise herself for not thinking before she spoke. "Honey, you didn't do or say anything wrong," Miley said lovingly. "I'm just really self-conscious right now when it comes to my body. I mean, I gained twenty-one pounds over the last ten months, then I lost about half of that in one day. I think my body's still in shock!"

"Miley, you still look incredibly beautiful to me," Lilly said, wrapping her arms around her best friend. "And you always will, I promise. But I know that you want to look your best, both for me and for your career, and I'm gonna do anything I have to do to help you with that. Even though I'm gonna love you forever, sweetheart, I want you to feel good about yourself, too."

Miley smiled as she let herself relax in Lilly's arms. "Well, gettin' Gwen Stefani's personal trainer is gonna go a long way when it comes to that. Just hope he can start a couple weeks early. He doesn't come cheap, but Gwen swears by him."

"You better be taking it easy for a few days, woman," Lilly said firmly. "Walking around the house is okay, but no exertion. We're not taking any chances with you, Miles, especially after the way you bled in the hospital." When Miley didn't immediately reply, Lilly need stronger measures were needed. "Promise me, Miley, that you won't overdo it? Please?"

Miley glanced at the astonishingly cute blonde hugging her. Lilly was right, of course, and Miley did understand the need to take her recovery slow, at least for the first few days. Patience wasn't her strong point—well, not for either of them, for that matter—but Miley knew she could do it. For Lilly and for their child, Miley could do anything. She smiled at Lilly and ran her fingers lightly through Lilly's soft golden curls. "I promise to not overdo it, Lilly Bear," she said sweetly. "Now let's get inside. It's time for baby Brooke to see her home."

Lilly insisted on unlatching the car seat from its base and carrying in the detachable baby carrier. The fabric was a lovely shade of purple shot through with streaks and strings of pink, covered with a mixture of Hannah Montana's butterflies, guitars and stars and Lola Montana's lightning bolts, surfboards and hearts. It was one of the first pieces in their Baby Montana line of baby gear, with more items to be hitting stores over the next six months. It had taken some persuasion last year on Lilly's part to get Miley to agree to licensing baby items, but Lilly had always proved to be extremely good at persuading Miley. In fact, Miley had already been willing to sign off on the Baby Montana items, but her curiosity as to how far Lilly would go to persuade her had led to a very energetic night of lovemaking that both young women had enjoyed immensely.

As Miley stretched her back, she watched Lilly carefully lift the carrier out of the back of their family car. She was pleased that they had stood firm on their desire to use 100% recycled material in the plastic of the baby carrier and car seat base; it had added significantly more development time, but Miley and Lilly were both pleased that their products were helping the environment rather than harming it.

"What are you thinking about, Miles?" asked Lilly as she shifted the carrier's handle to her left hand so she could hold Miley's hand with her right.

"Just about how good this feels," Miley answered as she stopped and hugged Lilly with her free right arm. "You know, bringin' our baby home." Judging from the two rental vehicles already waiting in their driveway, Miley knew that some of her family had already gotten here; she just wasn't sure who or how many awaited them inside.

As Miley opened the door, several voices joined together to shout, "WELCOME HOME!"

Miley and Lilly looked around, taking in Lilly's parents Meredith and Phil, Aunt Dolly, Mamaw Ruthie, and one other person whose presence made Miley winsome and proud all at once. "Daddy!" shouted Miley, opening her arms and hustling across the floor to throw herself into her father's arms. He hadn't made it out to California until early in the morning, so this was the first time for him to see his newest grandchild.

"Hey bud," said Robbie Ray as he hugged his daughter firmly. "Like what you two've done with the place," he said, giving Lilly a smile as he extended an arm for her too. Without a word but with a big smile Lilly crossed the room and hugged her father-in-law with one arm.

"Here, we've got a little girl who wants her other grandpa to hold her, since you didn't get to do it at the hospital," Lilly said as she placed the carrier down on the sofa. She quickly unbuckled the straps and gently lifted Brooke and her pale green blanket out of her cushioned seat, being careful not to wake her. "Miley fed her right before we left, so she'll probably sleep a little while longer." Lilly placed her daughter in Robbie Ray's arms, noting that he apparently still remembered how to hold a baby. Brooke continued to snooze away as she turned her head to face her other grandfather, putting a smile on Robbie Ray's face quite easily.

"Jackson and Kaela said they were sorry that they couldn't make it this time, but Kaela's studyin' for some big test of hers," said Robbie Ray with a hushed voice.

"And Luanne's all tied up with her work and takin' care of the house, since Ron's in Nashville another few days," added Dolly. "But they both said that they were happy for you two and that they'd try to get out here as soon as they could."

"Peyton and Melody were fit to be tied when their parents told 'em that they couldn't make it out this time," said Ruthie. "I had a word or two with their father, but I can see him not wantin' them to miss too much school this close to the end of the year." She put her arm around her son as she peeked at her newest great-granddaughter, resting snugly in his arms.

"We'll get them out here during the summer," Lilly said confidently. "Not like we're going anywhere, after all," she added with a smile.

"Hey, let's go make sure everything in the nursery is ready," said Miley suddenly as she took Lilly's hand. "I wanna try feedin' her in there when she wakes up!" Without waiting for a reply, Miley took off for the stairs, not exactly running but moving faster than she had since giving birth. Lilly felt herself being tugged along, just managing to keep her footing as Miley raced up the stairs.

"Ow," said Miley softly as she reached the top of the stairs as a faint shock of pain rippled through her pelvis. She gingerly rested a hand on her lower abdomen, drawing Lilly's interest.

"Miley..."

"I'm not overdoin' it, Lilly, I promise!" said Miley quickly. "I just moved a little too fast back there." She gave Lilly a loving smile that conveyed both the honesty in her statement and her gratitude for Lilly's concern. "C'mon," she said, "let's take a look at the nursery."

As they stepped into the nursery, Miley flipped the light switch, adding to the sunlight shining softly through the gauzy white drapes. She walked around the room, humming to herself as she inspected every piece of furniture and ran her fingers across all the exposed surfaces, smiling happily when no dust was to be found.

"Are you conducting an inspection, Miles?" Lilly asked, more than a bit amused by her wife's antics.

Miley stopped and looked over her shoulder, flashing Lilly a smile that sent a tingle up the small of her back. "Maybe I am," Miley said with a teasing quality to her voice.

Lilly turned to look at the decorations on the walls, trying to get her mind off how sexy Miley's voice had sounded. It was going to be several weeks before Miley's body would be fully healed, and the last thing Lilly wanted was to make her best friend feel pressured when it came to making love. Yes, Miley had told Lilly that there were other things they could do until she was fully healed, but Lilly truly didn't want to rush Miley into doing _anything_ before her body and her mind were ready. And so she found herself looking at the Hannah Montana posters placed along the walls of the nursery. While there were two Lola Montana posters also hanging, Lilly found her gaze skipping over them as her eyes danced from one lovely picture of her wife's alter ego to another.

"My gosh," she whispered as she took in one of Hannah's first posters. Miley had just turned fourteen, and her youth was evident in how thin her face and arms were. Her mouth was also slightly different, more prominent because the rest of her face hadn't filled out yet, but surprisingly Lilly still found her heart racing at how breathtakingly beautiful Miley had been, even back then. _I shouldn't be surprised, really. I mean, when we were this age I had already been in love with her for some time, even though I had just admitted it to myself a few months before this poster came out._

"You say somethin', hon?"

Lilly swallowed. _Did I say that out loud?_ She turned, starting to say that she was just clearing her throat, but she froze when she saw how close Miley was to her. In fact, Miley was less than a foot away, and while Lilly fought to speak, those remaining inches shrunk until Miley had her arms around Lilly, gazing into her bright blue eyes with a heated look that did all sorts of lovely things deep inside Lilly. Lilly knew her pupils had to be huge by the way Miley was smirking at her, so she just closed her mouth and smiled in reply.

"Whatcha thinkin' about?" asked Miley. By the look on her face, she most likely had a good idea of what was going through Lilly's mind, and the way her long fingers gripped Lilly's butt through her shorts only solidified that theory.

Lilly swallowed, noting how dry her mouth suddenly was. "Um, I was just, uh, thinking about..." Lilly shook her head. There was no point trying to fib to Miley; she'd catch the untruth before the words ever left Lilly's lips. "I was... thinking about how gorgeous you were, even at fourteen," Lilly admitted, gesturing to the poster she had been staring at. "I mean, you were already hot with a capital H." She paused and then added, "Hope that doesn't sound too creepy, I mean, me lusting after a poster of you at fourteen!" smiling weakly at she spoke.

Miley threw her head back and laughed her throaty, sexy laugh that always sent tingles of excitement up Lilly's spine, particularly when they were close enough for Lilly to see the subtle movements of her throat beneath the skin as she laughed. "Not _too_ creepy," Miley teased. "After all, you were fourteen then, too." Miley brushed Lilly's hair away from her face, tucking most of it behind her left ear. "So did I... turn you on back then?" she asked slyly as she stared deeply into Lilly's eyes, a glowing shade of turquoise in the morning light, while she slowly and lightly ran the fingertips of her left hand up and down Lilly's strong back.

Lilly nodded her head. "Yeah, you sure did," she said simply. "Even if I was too chicken to tell you until later." She felt herself blushing, and she couldn't help but smile as she admitted the feelings she had battled internally for so many months, even years, back then. And the fact that they were looking at this particular poster made it even more poignant.

"_So you like it?" asked Miley as she examined the newest Hannah Montana poster where it hung over Lilly's bed. As in, literally _over_ Lilly's bed. Lilly had gotten a stepladder and her father to help her tack the poster onto the ceiling, ensuring that Miley's face would be the last thing she would see before she fell asleep and the first thing she saw upon waking. Of course, Lilly would have preferred the poster to be one of Miley dressed as herself, but having a picture of her best friend blown up to poster size and then hung over her bed might have been a bit too obvious. _

"_I love it," answered Lilly truthfully as she fell onto her bed, lacing her fingers together behind her head as she reclined, staring up at the girl she was hopelessly—if secretly—in love with. "The way that shirt falls across your chest is really sexy," she said before she even realized what was coming out of her mouth. "And, uh, the jeans go with it perfectly!" she added, hoping she had covered up her tiny Freudian slip. _

"_Well, that particular poster now hangin' over your bed is the very first one ever made," said Miley proudly as she climbed onto Lilly's bed, knees first and then shifting to lie down beside her own secret crush. No, crush wasn't the right word, because Miley was sure that her feelings for Lilly were much more than a crush; they had grown out of the love and friendship the two girls had shared for years now, becoming something more powerful and more lasting than a fleeting infatuation. Her tangential attractions to various boys had slowly dwindled away over the last few months, being increasingly replaced by her deepening feelings for her best friend. Lilly was her one true love, and Miley had just recently mustered up the courage to admit that truth to herself. Maybe one day she'd be able to confess how she felt to Lilly, and maybe, just maybe, they'd get their chance to live happily ever after._

"_The first copy ever of that poster?" asked Lilly after considering Miley's words and what they meant, her head swiveling to stare at Miley with bright blue eyes._

_Miley couldn't help but laugh at Lilly's open-mouthed smile, indicating just how thrilled her best friend was at Miley's actions dating back several months. As Hannah she had asked in advance to be there at the first printing of this particular poster, and she had requested that she be given the first one that came off the line. Miley was sure that most of the people at the printing plant expected the young superstar to keep that poster as a keepsake, but Miley had plans for it that meant much more to her than any keepsake or memento ever could. She turned to face Lilly. "Yeah, the first one ever. I wanted you to have it, Lilly." How much more should she reveal? Had she already revealed too much? _

"_You know, most people would keep something like that for themselves," said Lilly pointedly. A hint of curiosity was buried beneath the question itself, obvious to her best friend._

"_Yeah, well, I was thinking of someone more important to me than myself," Miley said carefully, watching Lilly's eyes for any sign of reciprocation of the romantic feelings she kept carefully buried when she was alone with Lilly. But when Lilly suddenly slid across her bed and hugged Miley tightly, Miley felt her arms return the warm embrace reflexively, before her mind could decide if that was crossing the blurry line between close friendship and open love. But as she closed her eyes and let herself get lost in the scent of Lilly's vanilla-coconut shampoo and the warm strength of her wiry arms, Miley decided that at that moment she didn't care what lines they crossed._

"I still can't believe you kept this poster all that time," Miley said, shaking her head slowly. "And I _really_ don't know how you kept it from gettin' ripped or marked on or somethin' like that."

Lilly glanced sideways at her wife. "Another benefit of it being on the ceiling," she said sagely. _"Much_ harder to trash it up there."

Miley nodded silently as she and Lilly gazed at the poster. Hannah's autograph was still readily visible in the lower left corner, silver permanent ink on a dark brown background: _To my #1 Fan, Lilly Truscott! Love you, Hannah Montana_. Lilly carefully reached out to lightly touch the slick ink with her fingertips, smiling as she felt its familiar texture. She didn't see Miley stare at her with undisguised desire for long seconds, so it came as a surprise to her when Miley abruptly said, "Let's go to the bedroom, honey."

Lilly spun, not quite sure her ears had heard Miley correctly. "What did you say, Miles?"

Miley grinned. "I said, let's go to the bedroom. What did you think I said?"

"You have to take it easy, Miles," said Lilly, hesitant to do anything that could hurt her wife. However, she stopped speaking when Miley stepped closer and slid her right hand down the front of Lilly's shorts, fingers neatly diving between the soft fabric of Lilly's panties and her hot skin. Lilly's eyes snapped closed as her head tilted back slightly; she sighed so softly that Miley could feel it as much as hear it.

"Ready to go to the bedroom?" asked Miley, her low voice making Lilly quiver nearly as much as her finger's actions.

"Uh huh," whispered Lilly as she carefully unwrapped her arms from where she had placed them around Miley's shoulders moments ago. "Don't take your finger out of me," she whispered as she turned, pulling Miley's arm around her side as they began to sneak down the hallway to their bedroom. It was difficult to walk when all her attention was focused between her legs rather than in front of them, but together they managed to make it to their bedroom without incident.

As Miley closed the door behind them, she slid her finger out of Lilly and her hand out of Lilly's shorts as she gave her best friend a playful push forward in the direction of their bed.

"Uh!" grunted Lilly as she spun to give Miley a frustrated look. "Why'd you go and do that for?" she asked with a huffy voice, placing her hands on her hips to complete her only half-joking look of indignation.

Miley locked the bedroom door as she turned around and leaned back against the door. She slowly brought her right hand to her mouth, taking her time as she slid her slick middle finger between her pursed lips and into her mouth. Miley could tell by the look on Lilly's face that her best friend was about to explode with pent-up desire, so she cut her teasing foreplay short. "Strip," she said, pointing at the bed with her free hand.

Lilly had her clothes off in the same amount of time it took Miley to close the short distance from the door to their king-sized bed, somewhere between two and three seconds. She stretched her naked body out atop their soft pink comforter, making sure that Miley got a very good look at _all_ of her. _Two can play the foreplay game,_ she thought happily as she felt her heart speed up in time with Miley's.

As Miley watched Lilly show off her toned, athletic figure, it was all she could do to not pounce on top of her wife and take her without restraint. _And there might be time for that later tonight,_ she thought happily to herself, _once everybody else and their sharp ears leave._ Miley climbed onto their bed, straddling Lilly at her waist. Miley could feel her pelvis twinge with the position she was in, so she was careful to not stretch her legs any further. "Now, what was it Dr. Jensen said to us?" she asked as she leaned over Lilly, letting her long brown hair fall on each side of Lilly's head and shoulders. "Oh yeah," Miley murmured, "she said, 'No vagina sex for you, Miley, not for six weeks!'" Lilly giggled at Miley's quite good imitation of their obstetrician's voice, making Miley snicker as well.

"But," Miley continued as she began to softly kiss Lilly's left collarbone, "she didn't say anything about me making love to you, Lilly Bear. And I think that you've earned some really special lovemaking, with everything that you've done for me through this whole pregnancy."

Lilly felt herself start to tear up as she reached up to carefully run her fingers through Miley's cascading waves of chestnut brown hair. "I was happy to do anything for you, honey," she said. "Even when it was three in the morning and you decided you had to have a milkshake or some fresh raspberries or something like that."

Miley smiled broadly. "Even though you really didn't want to wake up, you always got out of bed, got dressed and drove me wherever I wanted, honey. And you didn't even complain too much."

"Well, I had to complain _some_, or you wouldn't have appreciated it as much."

Miley considered that for a moment before nodding. "You may be onto something there," she admitted. "But I really do appreciate everything you do for me, Lilly. And you have been the best wife that anyone's ever seen durin' this pregnancy, I swear."

Lilly smiled as she lifted her head enough to press her lips against Miley's soft pink ones. "Thank you," she said softly, rubbing the tip of her nose against Miley's. "I think we did pretty good for two first-time mothers, don't you?"

"Totally," Miley agreed with a nod. "And that brings us back to me making love to my amazing wife," she said with a sly grin as she briefly considered what tantalizing action she should begin with.

Not quite thirty minutes later, Miley and Lilly made their way downstairs. Miley was pulling her long hair back into a ponytail as she stepped off the stairs onto the ground floor, with Lilly just a step behind her. Lilly was sure that everyone in their house knew what the two of them had done, mainly because she just couldn't get her huge grin off her face. Oh, and there was the matter of Miley's shirt being on inside out. The tag poking straight out from her collar was a dead giveaway. Lilly just smirked more as she decided not to mention that little slip to her wife. _Like Miley said, everyone knows anyway, _she thought as she looked out the back door at the ocean._ Oh yeah. This day kicks ass._

The next few days passed by in what seemed to be a blur to both new mothers. Their company left after two days, flying back to Tennessee so the new parents could spend some dedicated bonding time with their baby. After the first three nights of both of them getting up and moving to the nursery when Brooke woke up crying during the night, they mutually agreed to move Brooke's bassinet into their bedroom, positioning it just a few feet away from their bed. Lilly said she'd get another bassinet to match it later in the week so they could keep one in Brooke's nursery, which led Miley to agree to the change.

Lilly initially grumbled about how much more work she had to do than Miley in terms of feeding; when it came her turn to get up and feed their daughter, Lilly had to get out of bed, pick Brooke up and rock her while they went downstairs, heat up some of Miley's pumped breast milk, test the temperature on her wrist, feed Brooke while rocking her, burp her and clean up any resultant surprise, then finally carry the once-again snoozing infant back upstairs to her bed. But that changed after the first week.

Lilly solved her unfair distribution of work problem with one of her typically brilliant, if offbeat, ideas. The next time she woke up and took a hungry, grouchy Brooke out of her bassinet, she simply carried her daughter back over to the bed she and Miley shared. "Oooooh, you're a little fussbudget, aren't you?" she cooed happily to her daughter, who didn't seem very amused by her mother's baby voice. "Yes you are! Just like your momma the big fussbudget! Yes ooo are!" Lilly slid back into the warm spot in the bed that she had just vacated, placing Brooke between her and Miley. It didn't take much effort to get Miley to roll over without quite waking her up, and Lilly found it even easier to support Brooke's head and brush her baby lips against Miley's nipple to get Brooke to latch on and start nursing hungrily. She giggled at the grunting noises that their daughter made as she ate, covering her own mouth in an attempt to not wake Miley. Once Brooke was done with one breast, Lilly carefully dislodged her and then switched both of them to Miley's other side after rolling her wife back over. When Brooke was finished with Miley's other breast, Lilly burped her and then placed her back in her bassinet and slid back into bed beside Miley. As she lovingly stared at her wife's breasts, she quickly placed a soft, quick kiss of thanks on each of them before snuggling back up against her wife, nuzzling her nose against Miley's as she rejoined her wife and child in slumber.

The next morning Miley awoke first, stretching lazily as she sat up in the bed. She looked in the bassinet beside her bed, smiling as she saw Brooke sleeping peacefully. However, her nose wrinkled as she caught a whiff of what lay hidden in her daughter's diaper. "How can somethin' as cute as you make smells as nasty as _that?"_ she asked to no one in particular. "C'mon, stinky britches," she said as she picked Brooke up and carried her down the hall into the nursery, placing her on the changing table. She made sure to fasten the safety strap across Brooke's body as she unsnapped the nightie, exposing the guilty diaper. She quickly changed Brooke, depositing the dirty diaper into the smell-containing diaper trash can they had bought several months ago. She washed Brooke's bottom with a warm baby wipe, prompting a fleeting smile from her daughter. It had been Lilly's idea to buy an automatic baby wipe warmer, pointing out to Miley how much both of them hated cold washcloths first thing in the morning, and that had turned out to be another good idea. Miley smiled and hummed softly as she lightly dusted Brooke's bottom with baby powder, sniffing in the fresh, clean scent as she began putting a new diaper on her daughter.

Miley's heart jumped slightly as she started tucking Brooke's tiny legs back into the nightie; that combined with the growing warmth in her chest told her that Brooke's other mother had joined the two of them. "Morning, lover," Miley said quietly as she reached up over her shoulder with her left hand, squeezing Lilly's fingers as they trailed across Miley's hand. A soft robe slid over Miley's shoulders, giving her relief from the slight chill in the air. After getting used to sleeping with Lilly, Miley always felt cold when she first got out of bed; Lilly's body heat was considerable even without any amorous activities, and Miley loved it. "Mmm, thanks for the robe. I was gettin' cold."

Lilly slid her arms around Miley's waist, tying the fluffy white robe loosely around Miley's long, more slender body. "Who would've thought," she said pleasantly as she stood on her tiptoes to peer over Miley's shoulder. "Aw, she looks so adorable," Lilly said proudly. "Just like you when you sleep," she added as she kissed Miley's cheek.

"She smiled while I was changing her diaper," said Miley proudly.

"And I missed it?" Lilly asked quickly. "Uh! No fair!"

"Look," whispered Miley, pointing down at Brooke where she lay on the changing table. As Lilly's gaze joined Miley's the two of them saw Brooke look at where her mothers stood together and then smile again, holding it for a few seconds before the expression shifted and was once again that of curious inquiry.

"She smiled at us," said Lilly. "Early for that, isn't it?"

"Yeah, but every baby is different, remember? Some smile earlier, some smile later. It might have just been gas or somethin'."

"Well, if it was, she'd have gotten it from you," teased Lilly as she unbuckled the safety strap and picked up their daughter.

"In your dreams, girlfriend," Miley replied quickly with a grin.

Not quite two weeks later Miley and Lilly made their first post-baby appearance as Hannah and Lola. Oprah Winfrey and her studio audience were captivated by the adorable baby as well as the beaming young mothers, and when the filming was over Miley and Lilly found themselves besieged by supportive fans and their families. Finally Brooke decided that enough was enough, and when a soft cry didn't get her mothers to make their retreat, filling her diaper did.

"Ugh," said Lilly as she changed her daughter's diaper backstage. "You could've picked a more pleasant way to tell your mommies it was time to go, little girl."

Miley smiled as she sat on the counter beside Brooke, gently stroking their daughter's wispy blonde hair. "Well, she _did_ start fussin' at us," Miley said politely. "We just kinda ignored her."

"Well, I'd say she got us back," replied Lilly with a wry grin as she snapped the bottoms of the hidden onesie beneath Brooke's baby dress. She picked up the infant and handed her to Miley, then she covered their girl with her soft pink blanket as Miley shifted Brooke so she was lying against her chest and shoulder. The ringing of Miley's phone filled the room with the strains of Hannah's song "Fallen Angel," but the sleepy baby ignored the new noise easily. "I got it," Lilly said as she fished the phone out of Miley's left front pocket. "Lola speaking, Hannah's busy holding the baby, can I help you?" she said cheerily. She listened for a minute, then she glanced over at Miley with inquisitive eyes. "You feel like stopping by the record company today, Hannah? They said that you had a special visitor over there waiting to see you."

Miley thought for a moment, then she shrugged her shoulders softly, being careful to not wake Brooke. "Sure, I guess we could stop by there. I never get tired of showin' our daughter off," she added with a loving smile.

"Okay, we'll be by there in just a few," Lilly said. "Bye!" she said before she ended the call. She slipped the phone back into Miley's pants pocket, brushing her fingers over Miley's hip as she withdrew her hand. The two of them shared a knowing smile; Brooke had been sleeping in her own bed for several hours the last few nights, giving Miley and Lilly some precious time to carefully make love and intimately recharge each other's soul. Lilly was hoping that their moments of personal intimacy would continue, because she cherished every single one of them even more now.

It was evident by the look on Miley's face that she was sharing much the same feelings as Lilly. "Love you," she said quietly with a tender smile as they walked to the performers' entrance of Oprah's studio.

"Love you too, country girl," replied Lilly with a wink and grin as she looked beside her, her heart once again thrilling at the dreamy sight of Hannah Montana gazing at her with undisguised love and devotion.

"Cali girl," Miley tossed back, flashing Hannah's brilliant smile just for the woman she loved.

"_Your_ Cali girl," said Lilly proudly as she slipped her right arm around Miley's waist, pulling her close until their hips rubbed against each other as they walked. "If that's too close, let me know, hon."

Miley gave her a soft look of disbelief. "Like either one of those is gonna happen," she replied sarcastically. After a moment she added, "You couldn't ever get too close to me, baby. Not possible. And there's no way I'd tell you if there was, because you touchin' me feels _way_ too good to give up."

As they reached the limousine, a few paparazzi were eagerly waiting, and the cameras began to flash and whir even before Miley, Lilly and Brooke were close enough for good pictures. As the voices began to shout, Lilly held her hands up and out as she said in a firm voice, "Hey! Our daughter's asleep, so we'd really appreciate it if you wouldn't wake her up. If you behave, we'll let you take some close-up pictures of us, but no pushing, fighting or yelling, okay?" After a few seconds of murmured approval, Lilly said with a smile, "Good. Now get some pics of our little jellybean, because she's the cutest thing ever!"

The impromptu photo session lasted nearly ten minutes, with Miley and Lilly taking turns holding Brooke as well as each other. When they were finally underway with Brooke strapped snugly into her carseat in the back of the limousine, Miley leaned heavily against her wife. "Long day so far," she said. "I'd almost forgotten how draining it can be to do the whole Hannah-Lola thing."

Lilly smiled and shook her head slowly. "I hadn't," she said as she kissed the top of Miley's head. "But I still had a great time being with you and our baby. Listen, if you want to just skip stopping by DreamWorld, I can call them and—"

"No," said Miley, her voice quiet but firm. "I know they want to see little Megan," she said, tasting the new name as it rolled off her tongue and deciding once again that she liked it. "Plus I want to show off what a cute baby we make," she added with a cocky grin of a superstar.

Lilly leaned over and kissed her fingertips, then she lightly touched them to their daughter's tiny forehead. "We certainly do," she said proudly.

The drive to DreamWorld only took four minutes, since it was just down the road from Oprah's studio. Lilly was the first to walk into the DreamWorld office, smiling as she saw how busy Helena, the receptionist, was. "Hi Helena!" Lilly said cheerily. As the young blonde just slightly older than Lilly and Miley looked up, Lilly nearly laughed at how her expression went from frustration to delight in just seconds.

"Mrs. Mont—er, I mean, Lola! And Hannah!" she squealed as she shot to her feet. She gasped as Miley stepped closer. "Is that...?"

Miley nodded. "Yep. This here is Megan," she said proudly as she turned so Helena could examine the baby's features.

"Oh, she's adorable!" Helena said, toning her voice down now that she saw Brooke was asleep. "And her name's Megan?"

"Uh huh," said Lilly. "Megan Montana. Got a nice ring to it, doesn't it?"

"I'll say," said Helena. With a gleam in her eye, she said, "As soon as we heard that you had gone into labor two weeks ago, we all volunteered some time to get your nursery ready."

"Nursery?" asked Miley. "I didn't have a nursery here." She turned to look at Lilly, who appeared equally puzzled. "Did I?"

"You didn't, but you do now." Helena moved to the entrance to the rest of the building, opening the door and motioning for Miley and Lilly to follow her. As they walked through the building, a few people spotted them. Inevitably each person would first happily greet Hannah and Lola and then be enthralled by the snoozing baby with them. By the time they reached Hannah's large office, the procession was nearly a dozen strong.

"Okay, you know that conference room beside your office?" asked Helena as she stopped at one door before Hannah's office.

"The one I never use?" asked Miley.

"Yes! Well, you can use it now!" Helena opened the door to reveal a most striking change to the formerly stuffy conference room. The formerly dark room had been redone in shades of white and soft pink, and a changing table and a playpen had been added to two corners of the room. A large rocking chair and a pink loveseat had replaced the leather conference chairs that had formerly been in the room, but as Miley and Lilly walked into the room they found their eyes drawn to what had replaced the medium-sized conference table.

"Is that a craps table?" asked Miley, utter surprise in her voice. "Like for gambling?"

"Well, yes and no," Helena said hastily. "Yes, it's a craps table, but it's not for gambling. My brother-in-law works for one of the casinos in Las Vegas, and they were getting ready to just throw this one out. They told him that if he'd haul it off, he could have it for free. I offered him fifty dollars for it, because I thought it would make a fabulous little play area for your baby!"

Miley turned to look at Lilly, and the look of uncertainty of her best friend's face reflected what Miley herself was feeling. "I don't know, Helena, I mean—"

"Look, it's all carpeted with really low-pile velvet which we had installed by an upholstery service, the walls are padded with brand new shock-absorbent foam and they're high enough that your little rugrat won't be able to climb out of it for several months. This new padding and the pink velvet is all hypoallergenic and so tough that she won't be able to chew through any of it. It's also padded lightly underneath the velvet, not so soft as to be dangerous but just enough to protect her little head when she starts rolling over. And did I mention that it's the most stunning shade of pink that we found for the velvet?"

Lilly looked closely at Helena while she was speaking, and the more the blonde talked the more Lilly realized that she had put quite a bit of time, effort and money into doing this. Lilly silently reached forward and lightly brushed her hand against Miley's arm, catching her wife's gaze before she made a show of stroking the soft pink velvet lining the large table. "It feels really soft, Hannah," Lilly said, lifting her head up to smile at Miley. "I think that Helena put a lot of time into converting this room into a nursery, and you've got to admit that nobody else'll have a playpen quite like this one," she added with a humorous smile.

"It wasn't just me," Helena quickly added. "Several of us put in some free time getting everything ready, and Ms. Kittrell paid for most of it."

Miley and Lilly looked at each other, sharing similar thoughts of pleasant surprise. Apparently Jen _did_ have a maternal streak in her after all.

"We also redid the room so it now has a door that adjoins your office," added Helena, pointing to the door that Miley honestly hadn't even noticed until it had been pointed out. "That door locks from inside your office only, so you can't ever be locked out of here. The hall door still locks like always, we've just been leaving it open until you actually started using it. That made it easier for us to work on it during our breaks."

Lilly made a mental note to call Jen as soon as possible. _I want everyone who volunteered their time to doing something as sweet as this to get paid for every minute they worked, no questions asked. It's the least we can do for people who care this much about us. I know Miley feels the same way._

"Thank you," Miley said, wiping at the moisture that was slowly forming in her eyes.

"Yes, thank you," Lilly added. "All of you really went above and beyond to get this done, especially since little Meg decided to come a couple of weeks early." As everyone laughed lightly, Miley handed Brooke to Lilly, smiling as she watched her best friend kiss their child on the forehead, getting a sleepy grunt and frown in response.

"Lola and I could never ask for a group of people as sweet as all of ya'll," Miley said, looking around the room. "We're really blessed to work with each and every one of you, really. Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts."

As everyone clapped softly, Lilly leaned over and whispered in Miley's ear, "You said hearts."

Miley immediately understood what Lilly was saying, and she grinned because she hadn't forgotten anything or misspoke in any way. She turned and said softly in Lilly's ear, "Two hearts. One for our baby, and the one that we share. That's why I said hearts instead of heart, like I would have if I'd been talkin' about just you and me."

"Ah," said Lilly proudly. She smiled as she realized that Miley had indeed spoken correctly. "You're good," she said to her best friend, who winked in return.

"You know it, girlfriend," Miley said in reply. She turned to look at Helena. "So who's here wanting to see me?" Miley asked.

"Oh! I completely forgot!" said Helena quickly. "I notified Ms. Kittrell as well, but she was across town. She should be here before long, though." Helena hurried out the door into the hall, leading Miley and Lilly the short distance to Hannah's office. "I was asked to keep this visit a secret, so I asked her to wait inside your reception area until you informed of what you wanted to do." Taking a hint, the others who had gathered to see little Megan Montana quickly dispersed to give the Montanas some privacy.

"Okay..." said Miley slowly, trying to decide who warranted such an effort to keep things quiet. She opened the door to her private reception area, staring in shock at... "Mikayla?!"

Lilly instantly stepped into the room, closing the door behind them. She quickly handed Brooke to Miley, prompting Mikayla to jump to her feet.

"Whoa! _Whoa!_" Mikayla said abruptly, holding her hands out in front of her to forestall being attacked by an angry Lola Montana. "Believe it or not, I didn't come here to fight."

"Well, I _don't _believe it," said Lilly, right arm drawn back as she stepped between her family and her wife's nemesis. "In fact, I—" Lilly stopped as she realized that Mikayla wasn't the only person waiting on them. Sitting beside and slightly behind Mikayla was a small girl who appeared to be about four or five, dark hair and bright eyes both quite evident as she sat in apparent shock. "Well, who are you?" Lilly asked in a much more polite voice as she lowered her arms.

"You're..." gasped the little girl, pointing at Lilly. "You're..."

"I'm..." replied Lilly with a smile, matching the girl's stammering. "I'm Lola," she said with a smile, extending a hand to shake with the youngster. "And who are you?"

The young girl gingerly took Lilly's hand, shaking it seriously before she could find the words to speak. "I'm Esmerelda, but most people call me Esme 'cause it's shorter," she said with a quiet voice. "I asked Aunt Mikki if there was any way I could meet Hannah Montana, but I didn't know that I'd get to meet you too!"

"Wait a minute," said Miley as she stepped forward to get a better look at their other guest. She made a point to keep Lilly between Brooke and Mikayla, though. No point in taking chances. "She's your aunt?" Miley asked, not believing that any relative of Mikayla's could actually be polite.

"Uh huh!" said the little girl proudly. "My parents brought me out here for the week, so I could see Aunt Mikki." She looked down slowly as she added, "Well, they're not my real parents. My mommy died right after I was born. I don't remember her at all."

"Aww," said Miley, all too familiar with how it felt to lose a mother. "I lost my momma too, but I was older. I was nine." She shifted Brooke to hold her with one hand and extended her other hand to the little girl. "I'm Hannah," Miley said simply.

"You're really pretty in person," said Esme as she shook Miley's hand just as seriously as she had Lilly's.

"Why, thank you!" said Miley happily.

"OHMYGOSH!" Esme suddenly squealed. "Is that your baby?" She jumped to her feet, standing up in her chair as she peered at the now-stirring bundle in Miley's arms. "Oops!" she said, covering her mouth with her hands. "Sorry!"

Brooke started to fuss noisily, and the sound of her cries triggered a now-familiar sensation in Miley's breasts. "My milk just let down," she said as she turned to Lilly.

"Let's go into your office, honey," said Lilly. "I've got a blankie in the diaper bag so you can nurse her."

"Thanks, hon," Miley said, relief obvious on her face. "Didn't really want to soak this shirt." Miley was _not_ a big fan of nursing bras, to say the least. She found them quite uncomfortable, and since the three of them had been spending most of their time at home, she hadn't really been in any situation where she couldn't drop everything and nurse Brooke. One of her concerns about today had been what to do if her milk let down while they were out in public, possibly causing her to leak through her sheer bra and onto her shirt. That would be extremely embarrassing to the young mother, because she knew a picture of that would circulate through myriad tabloids from now until the end of time.

As Lilly unlocked the door to Hannah's office, she moved aside to let Miley step in first and sit in her ultra-plush chair, then she followed her wife in. It only took a few seconds to retrieve a blanket from the diaper bag; as soon as she had the soft blanket in her grasp, Lilly tossed it to Miley, neatly landing it equally on Miley's chest and Brooke's back. "Ha!" she laughed once as Miley smiled and Brooke fussed even more at the strange object touching her. However, as soon as Miley got them covered with the blanket and lifted her shirt and bra to let Brooke start feeding, the fussy cries stopped, replaced with eager grunts and content sighs.

"She eats a lot," said Miley, smiling over at both Esme and Mikayla. _Might as well be polite,_ she thought to herself, knowing that Lilly would get most of what she was thinking. _Just because Mikayla's a bitch doesn't mean we should act the same way, especially to her little niece_. She looked up at Lilly, who appeared to be in agreement, if only begrudgingly, as she looked back at Miley. "So why did you want to meet me while you were out here, Esme?" Miley asked pleasantly, focusing her attention on the little girl with the big smile on her face. _Oh, she is just adorable. How ironic would it be if Mikayla's niece was actually one of my fans? She sure seemed to be a big fan of Lilly's, too._

"Well, I love your music!" Esme said eagerly. "And the clothes you two make are really cool!"

Lilly took a closer look at Esme, trying to see if this was some kind of joke, but all she could see was honest excitement on the little girl's part. "I think I might know why she wanted to come by and meet us, Hannah," Lilly said.

"Why's that, hon?"

Lilly flashed Lola's quirky smile at Esme as she said, "I think I know a little girl who wants some autographs!" Sure enough, Esme laughed and clapped her hands happily at Lilly's words. "You think we might be able to find some CDs or posters for Esme, sweetheart?"

Now Miley smiled as well. "I think we might be able to scrounge up some souvenirs for a fan," she replied confidently. She swiveled the chair slightly, moving close enough to her desk to pick up her phone. "Hey, Helena?" she said into the phone. "You think you could scare up some posters and CDs for Lola and me to autograph for little miss Esme?"

Sitting across the room, Mikayla was amazed at how friendly Hannah and Lola were being to Esmerelda. Despite all the mean, bitchy things Mikayla had done to them, they put all that aside to be nice to a five-year-old fan who wanted to meet them. _God, they're so hopeless, _she thought, being careful to keep the blank smile on her face. _They deserve what they'll get._

After Helena brought in several posters of Hannah and Lola, four of Hannah's CDs—Miley removed the copy of her newest album, since it was made for an older audience—and three shirts, two Hannah Montana and one Lola Montana, Miley and Lilly happily signed each item for Esme. The girl was thrilled at just meeting two of her favorite stars, but having them give her several personally autographed souvenirs pushed her beyond ecstatic. By the time Esme and Mikayla walked out of Hannah's office, the five-year-old was literally jumping up and down in place, waving her Lola Montana t-shirt as she carried a small bag stuffed with other memorabilia, including a half dozen autographed posters poking up out of the bright yellow bag.

"She looks pretty happy," said Lilly to Mikayla as they watched Esme dance down the hall.

"Esme!" called Mikayla. "You wait at the reception area, okay? I'll be right there." As her niece waved her acknowledgment, Mikayla turned to regard Hannah and Lola. "I don't get you two at all," she said after studying them for a moment. "I mean, I pull all the shit that I've thrown at you, and you still go out of your way to be nice to my niece. How do you do that?"

Miley looked at Mikayla with a neutral gaze. "It's who we are," she finally said. "It's in our nature."

Mikayla considered Miley's words for a bit, then she looked up into her nemesis' glittering blue eyes. "Then your nature is _entirely_ too trusting," she said, allowing an insidious smile to creep across her lips. "Hope you're gonna be ready to perform at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in three weeks, Hannah," she said, and now her smile was no longer blank but rather unsettling. "I put out a press release this morning challenging you to a hard rock rock-off at the concert after the induction ceremony there. You may sell more records than me for now, but let's see how you do with something outside of your precious comfort zone. If you've got the guts to even show up, that is." Mikayla went to poke Miley in the chest, but her hand was slapped away by Lilly before her finger could come close to Miley or Brooke.

"You're a real piece of work, you know that?" spit Lilly at the smirking brunette.

"So I've been told," replied Mikayla, her smug smile not wavering.

"Mikayla, I can outsing you on any day with any type of music you want," Miley said heatedly, shifting Brooke to her right arm to eliminate the chance of her dominant arm spontaneously knocking the smug grin off the other singer's face. "So if you really want me to embarrass you at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame concert singin' hard rock or heavy metal, I'll be happy to do just that."

"Good!" said Mikayla. Hannah had always had the upper hand whenever they had faced off in the past, but this time it was Mikayla dictating the timing, location, and type of music, and this time she'd come out on top. After all, Hannah had just delivered a baby two weeks ago, and she had taken several weeks off from touring or performing before that. She was going to be walking into this concert cold, out of sync, out of shape, singing to a completely different style of music... and without her regular band.

Margot had done some checking over the last two months, and no less than five of Hannah's band members were going to be gone on vacation at the time of the upcoming concert, three of them out of the country. It was a gamble that the blonde superstar wouldn't call them back from their vacations to play at this concert, but Mikayla was extremely confident that Hannah wouldn't ruin her musicians' private time with their families just for a personal challenge between the two of them. She was just too kind-hearted, and that would prove to be her undoing this time. Breaking in a new band took weeks, if not months, and time was not on Hannah Montana's side this time.

Then there was the _other_ trap that Mikayla had planned for Hannah, but now wasn't the time or place to wave that dare in her face. Mikayla wanted Hannah to stew on the upcoming concert for a few days before dangling another challenge in her face, particularly one that very obviously played to Hannah's weaknesses. Just thinking about what awaited her enemy made Mikayla feel deliriously happy inside. First she'd hurt Hannah's reputation, then she'd hurt _her._

Mikayla continued to smile as she asked with an overly sweet voice, "So should I tell the press that you've bravely taken me up on my challenge, or should I wait a few days in case you decide to chicken out?" By the way the fire flared up in both Hannah's and Lola's eyes, Mikayla knew she had used precisely the right words.

"Hannah won't be backing out!" said Lilly angrily. "You'd be the one to back out, if you had any sense! Or do you just get off on having my wife make you look like an idiot? Oh, not that you'd _need_ any help; you do a good job of looking like an idiot all by yourself!"

Mikayla's smile snapped into a grim frown as she leaned forward. "At least I know not to dye my damn hair twice a week," she shot back. "It's a wonder you've got any fucking brain cells left under that mess you've got on your head."

"Lola," said Miley firmly, knowing very clearly that her wife was a second away from beating Mikayla within an inch of her life. "Her niece is out there, and it'd scare her to see an ambulance come to get her aunt."

"We could have them pull around the back," said Lilly, not backing off at all.

Miley turned to Lilly. "Here," she said as she handed Brooke to Lilly. "Hold your daughter." Lilly gave Miley a disgruntled look, but she took Brooke without any complaint. In fact, as soon as she lifted the baby to her chest, she felt her anger start to dissipate. _You sneaky woman_, Lilly thought as she looked pointedly at her wife, _you knew that holding our child would settle me down, didn't you?_

Miley smiled back at Lilly as she felt the searing heat of Lilly's anger deep in her own chest start to fade. "Love you, Lola," she said before she kissed her wife on her cheek, placing another kiss on their daughter's cheek as well.

"Love you too, Hannah," Lilly replied, amazed that she could be smiling just seconds after being ready to give Mikayla the beating of her life. "And thank you," she added, knowing that Miley would understand what she was thanking her for.

"You're welcome," Miley answered, then she turned to once again look at Mikayla. "I think you can find you way out, Mikayla," she said, her hands on her hips and her tone of voice clearly indicating dismissal.

Without another word, Mikayla turned and strode down the hall. "Aren't you even going to thank us? For taking the time to meet Esme?" asked Miley incredulously as Mikayla walked away.

The other singer stopped and turned around. She stared directly into Miley's eyes as she said with an icy voice, "No." She then turned back around and continued walking away.

As Mikayla collected Esme and left the DreamWorld office, Miley and Lilly just stood and looked at each other for several seconds. The chiming of the door drew their attention, but instead of seeing Mikayla's arrogance returning they saw the uncharacteristically surprised face of Jen Kittrell. "Was that fucking _Mikayla_ that I just passed walking out of here?" Jen loudly asked.

"Yeah," said Miley, her voice slightly subdued. "She brought her niece over because she's a fan of ours and wanted to meet us."

"She was a cute kid," Lilly added. "Five years old, and every bit as sweet as Mikayla is bitchy. We signed some posters and CDs for her, and Mikayla repaid us by challenging Hannah to another sing-off. Now she thinks she can rock harder than my woman here."

"Well, she's a dumb slut," said Jen coldly. "But at least she's consistent. Someone was telling me the other day that she got caught screwing some guy in the bathroom at a nightclub last week."

"Wonder how much it cost Dyseni to keep that one quiet?" Lilly asked out loud. "But I guess she's selling records, or they wouldn't be putting up with it."

The three of them were quiet for few seconds before Miley said, "One day she'll look back at the mess she made of her life, and it's gonna kill her when she realizes it."

Jen turned to look at Miley with a quixotic look on her face, one that Miley had never seen before. "You remember the old fairy tale about the frog and the scorpion?"

"Fairy tale?" asked Lilly, smiling.

"Fairy tale, parable, story, folk tale, whatever the fuck you want to call it," Jen said, cutting her hand through the air as she spoke. "Anyway, there was this frog sitting on his ass on the bank of a pond, when this big scorpion comes up to him. The frog's just about to jump into the pond and get away before the scorpion stings him, but before he does the scorpion says, 'Hey, wait a minute'."

"Is that what the scorpion really said?" asked Miley, drawing a sharp look from her manager. Miley had to cover her face to hide her smile and stifle a laugh, but she managed to do so. Barely.

"Yes, that's what the goddamn scorpion really fucking said," said Jen, glaring at Miley. "To get back to my story, the scorpion asks the frog to carry him across the pond on his back, because he can't swim and it's too long a walk to go around. Well, the frog's not stupid, and he tells the scorpion that he doesn't want to do it because he thinks the scorpion's gonna shove that stinger right in his ass and kill him. But the scorpion looks at the frog and says, 'Well, I can't swim. So if I sting you while you're carrying me across the pond, it'd kill me too.' The frog thinks about it and finally says, 'Okay, but you have to let me get in the water first, so I can get back if you try to sting me right fucking here.' The scorpion tells the frog that that's cool, and before long they're off."

Jen looked back and forth between Lilly and Miley once, then she continued. "So they're going across the pond, right past halfway across, when all of a sudden the fucking scorpion just stings the frog, BOOM!" Jen smacked her hand for emphasis, making Miley and Lilly both jump. "The frog feels his whole body going numb from the venom, and they start to sink. He looks over his shoulder at the scorpion and says, 'Why the_ fuck_ did you do that, scorpion? You've killed both of us, you asshole!' Right before they both slip under the water and drown, the scorpion says to the frog, 'Because I'm a scorpion. That's what I fucking _do_.' "

Jen looked at her clients and friends, both of whom were utterly still. "Give me the details of when and where that bitch wants you to blow her ass off the stage, and I'll make the arrangements. But I want you both to remember this—Mikayla's a fucking scorpion."

A slight smile appeared on Miley's face. "Then we'd just better make sure that we don't look like frogs. Right?"

Jen returned Miley's smile. "See? You _can_ listen to people besides your wife." She patted Lilly on the shoulder and stepped past them on the way to her office. "Your kid's really fucking cute, too," she called out over her shoulder. "Looks like both of you, if you ask me."

As Jen walked down the hallway, she called out over her shoulder, "If you ever need me to babysit, just let me know. Kid's got to start expanding her vocabulary sometime."

"You're going to need a bigger swear jar!" Lilly yelled down the hall, leaning so she wouldn't be yelling in Brooke's ears. She turned back to Miley and said, "So you're taking her up on her challenge, right?"

Miley nodded. "Well, yeah. But this could be tough. I mean, most of my band is gone on vacation." She stopped and looked into Lilly's eyes as her face lit up. "But I might just have an idea about that..."

"You know, I used to cringe in fear whenever that expression came over your face," Lilly said.

"And now?" asked Miley curiously.

"Now?" replied Lilly with a smile. "Now I just think it's sexy."

**Author's Afterword:** Whoo! That was a fun chapter to write, although the fact that all four of my daughters currently have the flu made it tough to find time to work these last few days. Hope you enjoyed it; I know that I personally loved Jen's retelling of the old fairy tale. I think everyone will be quite pleased (and probably surprised) with Miley's idea. And what might that _other_ plan of Mikayla's be? You'll see soon enough, I promise. Thanks for reading, and I hope all of you that are sick recover fast and that all of you who aren't sick stay that way! See you soon!

Jo


	21. Chapter 21: Storm Clouds

**Author's Note:** Time for another chapter! It's been three weeks between the end of the last chapter and the beginning of this one, and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame concert is fast approaching. As for this chapter's music, I just had to go with Emily Osment's new song, because... it's pretty good, actually. Nice job, Ms. Osment.

Now, I do have one little pet peeve that's been growing over the last few weeks. What's up with all these people selecting Miley/Hannah and Lilly/Lola as the pairings for their story in the dropdown menus but then writing a story that's absolutely NOT Miley/Lilly? Come on, people! Now, if you're reading this far into one of _my_ stories, then I expect you're not one of the offenders, so this probably isn't going to change anything, but it does make me feel a bit better to vent on that issue. Thanks for listening. Oh, and if you _do_ happen to be one of the afore-mentioned offenders, please take a moment to go to your stories and fix the dropdowns so they illustrate the correct pairing for your stories. Thanks.

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist or publication mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo K.

Chapter 21: Storm Clouds

_I like to go out walking in the pouring rain_

_I want my rock and roll to make the windows shake_

_I wait 'til 3 a.m. to call everyone I know_

_I'm gonna bring the noise, I'm ready, here we go_

_All the way up, all the way down_

_Never look back, it's time to break out_

_I want it my way, I do what I do_

_I know what I like, and baby, it's you (that's right)_

-Emily Osment, "All the Way Up"

Miley Truscott stopped on her back porch, bending over in an attempt to catch her breath. She and Lilly had just finished a two mile run on the beach, and she was trying unsuccessfully to get her heart rate to slow down to something approaching normal before she followed her wife inside. She stood and leaned her head back, breathing in slow, deep breaths. As she heard the back door open, she opened her eyes and looked forward to see Lilly handing her a bottle of Gatorade with a proud smile on her face.

"Orange," Lilly said. "I already popped the lid for you."

Miley smiled as she took the cold drink and twisted off the cap easily. "Thanks," she said, placing a quick kiss on Lilly's lips before she took a long drink. "Mm, that's good!" she said, stopping to again take some deep breaths after downing half the bottle.

"You're getting faster," Lilly said, her voice both encouraging and pleased at once.

"Yeah, but you still run off and leave me the last little bit," Miley replied, still breathing much harder than her wife.

"But not as bad as it used to be. And if I don't run off and leave you, you keep staring at my butt."

"What's wrong with starin' at my wife's cute butt?" Miley replied quickly.

"Nothing, until you trip and fall. Then I have to come back and help you up, and things tend to happen then."

"Oh, I only pulled your top off that one time," Miley said dismissively.

"In front of those guys jogging!" Lilly shot back, placing her hands on her hips.

"I covered your boobs up—"

"With your hands!" Lilly paused, smiling despite her best efforts to restrain her amusement. "Although that did make the walk back to the house sort of nice."

Miley batted her thick eyelashes at her best friend and lover. "Told you," she said smugly. "And you liked it."

Now Lilly let her smile show clearly. "Yes, I did," she said softly. "Just like I like you, crazy woman."

Miley stepped closer to Lilly, reaching her arms around her wife to pull her close to her chest. "You're sweaty," said Miley playfully.

"Because you make me that way," retorted Lilly. "All the darn time, too."

"We got time for a shower before headin' over to your parents' place? I mean, not like they're gonna _want_ to give their granddaughter back up just yet."

"That's true," Lilly said thoughtfully. "You know, they've been really great about watching her for us while you're getting back into shape." Lilly kicked off her shoes as they opened the back door, placing them on the shoe rack just inside the back door. "Oh, and they said that they'd be happy to watch her for us tonight while we went out with Oliver and Ashley."

"Your parents are just awesome," Miley said as she closed the glass door behind them, adding her own shoes to the rack beside Lilly's. "But then, I already knew that, since they made you."

Lilly stopped a third of the way up the stairs and turned around to look back down at her best friend. "Why, Miley Truscott, are you trying to charm me or something?" she asked with a knowing look on her face.

Miley gazed back up at her wife, her best poker face in place. "Why? Is it workin'?"

"Come get in the shower with me," Lilly replied, slowly resuming her walk back up the stairs, "and I'll tell you, Miss Sassy Pants!"

"That's _Mrs._ Sassy Pants!" Miley countered as she bounded up the steps, quickly gaining ground on Lilly, who happily shrieked and took off at a run for their bedroom and its private bathroom. "And that makes _you_ Mrs. Sassy Pants, too!"

Lilly bounded across their bedroom, Miley hot on her heels. She ran into the bathroom and slammed the door closed, only to feel and hear a loud _whump_ of impact against the door, followed by another loud thud on the floor. "Oh shit," she whispered, her face turning white as she pictured her best friend running into the bathroom door at full speed, then toppling to the floor. She turned and turned the knob, yanking the door open as she yelled, "Miley, I am _so_—mmmph!"

Miley's lips were on hers before Lilly's brain could process that Miley was standing just on the other side of the door, grinning instead of lying on the floor unconscious. Lilly pulled her head back enough to ask, "But—how—you—"

"Hit the door with my hand," Miley replied with a supremely proud grin as she continued to hold Lilly securely. "Then I stomped the floor hard, to make it sound like I fell."

"It worked!" was all Lilly could get out before Miley's lips were once again atop hers, the passion dancing between them enough to set both young women's hearts afire again. As they continued to kiss in the door to their bathroom, Miley moved to press Lilly's back against the doorframe. Lilly tipped her head back to let her wife kiss her across her neck, purring softly as her body tingled wherever Miley touched her. "Mmmm, I like this," Lilly said aloud, closing her eyes to savor the sensations carried in Miley's touch.

"I like it too," Miley murmured against Lilly's hot skin, pausing to talk but not pulling her lips away from her Lilly. "But there's somethin' that I've been missin' these last few weeks."

Lilly nodded slightly, being careful not to hit Miley's head. "Yeah, I miss it too, sweetheart," she sighed. "But just a few more days, Miles. That's all." Lilly seriously understated how much she missed being able to touch Miley in that way she loved more than anything else, at being able to taste her sweet Miley in the way that only she would ever experience. And as badly as not being able to make love to her wife in that way was affecting Lilly, she knew it had to be even more agonizing for Miley herself.

Miley pulled her mouth away from Lilly's neck, making Lilly lift her head enough to look Miley in her amazing eyes, glowing an intense blueish gray at the moment, the desire in them readily evident as it strained to burst forth. "Screw a few more days," Miley said in a low voice. "I'm healed, honey. I know it. There's no more pain, no soreness, no bleeding, and no funky... stuff," with both young women shivering slightly at the last word. "I'm back to normal, Lilly," Miley continued, placing a light kiss on Lilly's lips but pulling back almost immediately, leaving Lilly's lips pursed and slightly opened, a silent invitation for Miley to dive deeper. "It's been over five weeks, and I _need_ you, honey, I need you to make love to me the way we've both been missing these last two months. Everything that we've done these last few weeks has been great, baby, but I need to feel you—" Miley swallowed as she could see the tears forming in Lilly's brilliant cobalt eyes, full of desire that matched her own, as she continued, "I need to _see_ you down there, Lilly, knowing exactly what you're gonna do to me, baby. I need that, and even with everything else we've done since Brooke was born, there's still been something missing these last few weeks."

Lilly nodded, wholeheartedly agreeing with every word Miley said. They had done many things they both loved as well as a few new things that they had also enjoyed, but like Miley said, something had been missing. Lilly smiled as she stared deeply into the eyes of her best friend, her partner, her wife. "Let's get in the shower," she said, "and then, if you'll let me, I want to make love to you, Miley."

Miley smiled broadly. "Oh, I want you to, Lilly Bear. Believe me, I _really_ want you to."

"Then what are we doing standing here, when we could be getting you all clean?" Lilly asked, allowing a smirk to crawl across her lips.

The next thirty minutes were among the most magical of Miley's life. Even with the two of them restraining themselves in the shower, the knowledge of what was to come imparted an electric charge to the air that both Miley and Lilly could easily feel. Simple touches as hand slid across hand when reaching for soap or shampoo, brief glances followed by anxious yet knowing smiles, body brushing against body as they changed position beneath the warm water's spray, all of these fleeting contacts left them both tingling with anticipation as they stepped out of the shower and hastily dried off. As their gazes connected, they both dropped their towels and ran to their bed, laughing as they did so.

As they reached their bed, Lilly turned down the covers before Miley grabbed her arms and turned her around for a burning kiss. Miley could feel her heart fluttering as Lilly's fingers ran across her bare back, her short nails tracing lines and circles of love as they trailed across Miley's skin. Miley broke the kiss and pulled the covers almost completely off the bed, leaving them tossed about at the foot of the bed. She smiled at Lilly as she crawled onto the bed, slowly making her way up the pillows as she made sure Lilly got a long look at her body. The sessions with a personal trainer had definitely paid off for Miley, but truthfully Lilly had already been doing a fine job with helping her get back into shape. Not having classes or business for the last few weeks had given Miley much more free time than she was used to, and she had been happy to add in walks on the beach with Lilly and Brooke when they found themselves with free time in the evenings. The result had been Miley's body not only returning to its pre-pregnancy state but becoming even healthier in appearance. It had been many days of working out three, four, even five hours a day at intervals spaced throughout each day, but Miley was pleased with the result. She had no lingering stretch marks because she had been careful to watch her weight gain during pregnancy, and she finally felt like her body was back in "Hannah form," as she put it to Lilly. And now that body was being showcased for her sweet, sweet Lilly, letting her see how hard Miley had worked to get back into shape not only for Hannah's career, but for _her._ For Lilly.

Miley smiled as Lilly's blue eyes took in all of her long, lean body. She rolled over, crossing her legs at the ankles at the knees to tease Lilly just a bit longer. _Poor Lilly. She's gonna go crazy when she finally gets a taste of me._

"Are you trying to drive me crazy, Miles?" asked Lilly with a contented smile as she herself crawled onto the bed. She was on her knees at Miley's feet when she slowly stretched her upper body toward the ceiling, doing her own version of show-and-tell for her wife's benefit. She tucked her arms behind her head as she tucked her dark gold hair behind her, using a soft hairband to secure it so it wouldn't be in her face, blocking her view of or attentions to Miley.

Miley looked at her best friend for a few seconds before she replied, "Maybe." Any other words were forestalled by Lilly gently grasping Miley's ankles. Miley raised an eyebrow at her wife, holding it briefly as Lilly returned her gaze.

"Are you ready, baby?" Lilly asked, flexing her grip on her lover's ankles. Her own heart was pounding fiercely, and knowing that Miley could feel her excitement too made her shiver even more. The moment she had been anticipating, had been dreaming of for weeks, was finally here. It took every iota of willpower she possessed to not fling Miley's legs apart, but Lilly managed to slowly part her wife's legs, savoring every second of contact between them. She kept her intense gaze fixed firmly on Miley's sparkling blue eyes as she reverently repositioned Miley's legs, but she couldn't help but notice the way Miley's lips curled with anticipation at her deliberate actions.

"Lilly..." Miley breathed out, only slightly louder than a whisper as her chest rose and fell.

"Yes, Miley?" Lilly replied, her own voice cut short as her throat tightened with emotion.

Miley stared down at Lilly, moisture evident in her sea blue eyes as she fought to control herself. "Make love to me, Lilly," she said carefully. "I need you so bad, honey."

Lilly reached up the bed and gripped Miley's thighs, using them to slide herself farther up and between her best friend's legs. She knew, and Miley knew, that there wasn't going to be any more foreplay. Not when they both needed this missing ritual of their love for their hearts, their souls, to be complete once more. Lilly leaned down, her lips opened in anticipation of touching her Miley this way once again, pausing just long enough to look up at the only person she would ever—_could_ ever—feel this way about and say, "I love you, Miley," with a voice gentle and sincere.

As Miley felt Lilly's tongue and lips begin to touch her in exactly the way she wanted, the way she _needed_, her eyes closed tightly as she dug her fingers into the bedsheets on each side of her. She gasped but was unable to get enough air in her lungs to tell Lilly how good what she was doing felt, how brilliant colors flashed and intense songs played with every second of her lover's touch on her body. Her right hand released the sheets and instantly buried itself deep in Lilly's blonde hair, pulling her lover's head against her with a force both insistent and pleading as Miley tried to wordlessly convey to her Lilly to go _faster_, go _deeper_, to fill her completely until there was no more Miley or Lilly but instead just one heart, one soul formed of nothing but pure, sweet love.

Miley wasn't sure how long it took for her mind to melt down into a buzzing surge of ecstasy. It could have been hours, minutes, days, seconds, years, she couldn't be sure. But as her body convulsed with the bliss of sexual release, she could feel a warmth surround her, a warmth that she knew came from Lilly and their powerful love for each other. Even as the rest of her world faded away in the blistering heat of her intense orgasm, she could feel Lilly beside her, touching her, holding her, kissing her, speaking to her, swearing her eternal love to Miley again and again.

"_I love you, Miley."_

Miley could hear those words ring throughout her mind, and without any conscious effort her lips spoke that phrase's mate.

"_I love you, Lilly."_

Miley felt wet lips kiss her forehead, bringing her out of her waking dream. She opened her eyes to see glistening pink lips move down and away, replaced with the most adorable nose she had ever seen. The nose was in turn replaced by two blue eyes shot through with tiny hints of both gray and green, the wide blackness of Lilly's pupils searching Miley's own eyes for the matching love they reflected.

"Did you like that, Miles?" Lilly asked, and the gentle words rushed through Miley's ears like a roar.

Miley couldn't see Lilly's lips move as she spoke those words, but her eyes could see the question in Lilly's gaze as she spoke. She nodded her head at first, finally gaining enough control of her body to slowly say to her concerned wife, "It was okay," with a deliberately understated voice.

Lilly's eyes danced in confusion for several seconds before a grin split her lips as she realized she was being teased. "Just okay, huh?" she asked, waiting for Miley's reply.

Miley smiled and leaned her head forward to kiss Lilly's lips delicately. "Lilly, that might have been the single most amazing experience of my life," she said as she wrapped her arms around her wife's neck. "And the only things that could even come close would be giving birth to our daughter, marrying you, and the first night we ever made love."

Lilly grinned and nuzzled her face against Miley's sweaty neck. "Good," she said simply. She held her lips against Miley's warm skin as she said, "Mmmm, you tasted like heaven, Miley. It had been _way_ too long."

Miley twirled a long strand of her dark brown hair as she and Lilly lay quietly on the bed, holding each other as they enjoyed the newly restored intimacy between them, once again whole and complete. Miley sighed happily. Things were once again right in their world. "You think your parents are gonna know what we did?" she asked Lilly, the corner of her mouth curling up in a slight smile as she pondered her own question.

Lilly lifted her head enough to look over Miley's thick chestnut hair and at her best friend's face. "Are you kidding? With that huge smile on your face? Miles, everybody's gonna know that you got off _big!"_

"Let 'em know," Miley said pulling Lilly even closer. "For the first time in weeks I feel like things are right again with our sex life."

"Gee, thanks," said Lilly, her voice notably ambivalent. "OW!" she yelled as Miley pinched her butt, making her jump. "What was _that_ for?"

"For jumpin' to conclusions that aren't true," replied Miley smartly. She lightly rubbed Lilly's butt where she had just pinched her, trying to negate the pain. "Lil, you have been so good these last few weeks with controllin' yourself, and I know that there've been times when you just wanted to cut loose but held back so you wouldn't hurt me."

Lilly looked away briefly then back at Miley, her face tilted down slightly. "Was it that obvious?" she muttered guiltily.

Miley smiled. "Honey, to _me?_" she asked, pointing a thumb at her own chest. "Yeah, it was. I know about every facial expression you've got, Lil. And they're all cute, by the way. But I felt bad, because I could see how you'd have to hold yourself back, and I knew that it was because my body was still healin'."

"But Miley, you couldn't help that! Don't you blame yourself for—"

Miley pressed her fingertips to Lilly's lips to halt her talking. "Lilly, my body had to heal. That's not anybody's fault as much as it is God's own truth, and I'm not blaming myself for what had to happen. But it was still making us miss something when we made love. You were great at making me feel good even without that, but it was still something that we both wanted but couldn't have. Right?"

Lilly nodded knowingly. "Right," she agreed. She hugged Miley, pushing her backwards on the bed before she wrapped her legs around Miley's thighs, holding her tightly.

"Umf, Lilly..." Miley said, trying to wriggle out of her best friend's rather intimate embrace but not having any success. "Lil, honey, we have... to go get... Brooke... from your parents..."

Lilly planted a kiss on Miley's lips, holding it a second or two before pulling back. She grinned and then released Miley from her whole-body embrace. "Sorry, I just couldn't resist!" she said, running her left hand through Miley's hair, being careful to not snag any possible tangles. "Okay, now we go get our little pork chop?"

Miley laughed, something that always sent a tingle through Lilly's body. "Yeah, we can go get our little pork chop," she replied. She shook her head as they stood. "I swear, you come up with some good ones, Lilly."

Lilly tossed Miley the shirt they had laid out before going on their run earlier that morning. "Oh, you're one to talk, Mrs. Truscott. Who was it that called our precious baby girl a screech owl the other day?"

"Hey, that was a good comparison! It was two in the mornin'!" Miley smiled as she turned her back to Lilly to hide her grin. "She gets that screechy voice from you, anyway," she said softly.

Instead of another protest, Miley felt Lilly wrap her arms around her protectively. Nothing more needed to be said to convey their feelings as Miley closed her eyes and leaned back into Lilly's strong grip, reveling in the unspoken pledge of love and security from her wife as the two of them simply stood there for long moments, slowly swaying, smiles prominent on both girls' faces.

The ringing of the doorbell startled the two of them, causing Lilly to release Miley from her long hug. She started to walk to the door only to have Miley kiss her on the lips. "Love you, Lilly Bear," Miley said. "I'll get it. You finish gettin' dressed." She hurried out of their bedroom and down the hall, carefully making her way down the stairs. She checked the clock as she crossed the living room. _Still fifteen minutes before we're supposed to pick up Brooke._ She called back up the stairs, "Hey honey, did your parents need us to get Brooke early or something?" Lilly yelled something, but Miley couldn't make it out. _Shoot, hope they're not too mad if we were supposed to pick her up early._ Miley opened the door, already saying, "Sorry, I didn't realize we were supposed to pick up—_WHOA!!" _

Miley froze holding the door open, her mind simultaneously telling her that there was no way this was actually happening while also spouting forth all the potential trouble that this person standing at their door represented. All the while, the person responsible for such abrupt mental chaos stood still, hands clasped in front of her and a look of matching shock on her face.

"Uh... Miley?" asked Mikayla. She forced a smile onto her face as she quietly asked, "Remember me?"

_Damnation! How did she figure it out?_ Miley's thoughts were racing as she tried to maintain her composure. "Um, yeah, I wouldn't think I'd've forgotten who you were this fast," she replied coolly, trying to decide on the best course of action. Well, no point making this too big a scene... if it could be helped now. "Come on in," she said, stepping aside to let Mikayla walk inside. "So," she slowly asked as she turned around to face her nemesis—who was acting surprisingly calm, not her usual smug self—"why are you here?"

Mikayla turned around. "Well, I know it's been several years since I last saw you, but I was wondering if we could just talk for a bit. About, you know, someone from both our pasts."

As Miley realized what Mikayla wanted, she began to jump for joy internally. _She doesn't know! She's not here because she figured out that Lilly and I are Lola and Hannah, she's here to talk about somebody else, probably Jerk Ryan. YES! _ "Uh, yeah, I guess we could do that," she said, allowing a small friendly smile to emerge on her face. _This could still work out smoothly,_ she thought until she heard the thumping of running footsteps upstairs, going down the hallway to the steps. _Uh oh. She felt how scared I just was, and now— _

"Miley! Are you okay down there?"

_Okay, scratch that thought of this working out smoothly. I wonder how hard it is to get bloodstains out of furniture upholstery? _

As Lilly's footsteps pounded down the stairs, Miley tried to move, but she could only get around the couch before Lilly jumped onto the landing at the bottom of the stairs. "Miley, I'm sorry, I was in the bathroom!" Lilly sputtered out as she focused on Miley. "What's wrong?" She took three steps across the living room toward her best friend before she registered the presence of their surprise guest.

"Lilly, guess who dropped by very unexpectedly!" Miley said, trying to use her face, her emotions to tell Lilly not to explode when she registered this was a visit from—

"MIKAYLA!" Lilly screamed, only to find herself nearly tackled by her wife. Miley wrapped her arms around Lilly and braced her legs, pulling with all her strength and still only barely holding her furious wife back from inflicting grievous bodily harm on Mikayla.

"Lilly! LILLY!" Miley yelled at her wife, who was kicking and trying to pull herself away from Miley's grip. "Lilly, _calm down!"_ She felt her grip slip just slightly, so she shifted tactics. "Lillian Truscott, please don't pull away from me," she said directly into Lilly's ear with a voice slightly above a whisper. _"Please, _honey."

Lilly stopped her twisting, but she wouldn't take her eyes off of this intruder in their home, someone who was most definitely _not_ welcome here. She turned to look at Miley. "Miley, you'd better have a good reason for keeping me—"

"She doesn't know," Miley whispered quietly into Lilly's ear. "She stopped by to see _us_," she continued with a whisper, emphasizing the last word as she spoke. "She said she wanted to talk about something, so don't kill her." Seeing the look of doubt on Lilly's face, Miley smiled and sweetly said, "Please?"

Lilly glared at Mikayla for several seconds before she finally, grudgingly said, "Okay. But you're asking a lot, Miles." She turned to look into Miley's eyes to convey how hard it was to restrain herself, but Miley could already feel Lilly's pulsating fury in her own chest.

"I know, hon," Miley said in a soft voice, smiling to try and lessen the tension in the room.

"Okay, did I piss in your Corn Flakes or something, blondie?" Mikayla said hotly, returning Lilly's glare.

Miley tensed, expecting Lilly to attempt another charge at the smart-mouthed brunette, but Lilly stood fast. Miley looked back into Lilly's face, but now she saw calm resolve instead of anger. "Thank you," she said, then she opened her arms and stepped forward, hugging Lilly to her chest tightly.

Lilly immediately returned the hug, closing her eyes and tamping down her internal turmoil as best as she could. "No, but you've been a total rampaging bitch to two of our good friends," Lilly said coldly to Mikayla. "Hannah and Lola Montana? You might have heard of them."

"Oh," said Mikayla, looking unperturbed. "Yeah, if you're friends with them, I can see why you're pissed at me. No big, then." She looked a bit more closely at Lilly and asked, "Hey, you were Miley's friend, right? The one that came to the set of the movie with her that time, when she tried to get Jake to break up with me?"

Lilly nodded. "If we'd known then what we know now, we'd have wished you two well and walked away," she said. "Going to all that trouble for an asshole like him was a total waste of time."

Surprisingly, Mikayla nodded her head. "You're right," she said. She turned to Miley and asked, "Is that why you started cheating on him when he went back to you after that?"

"_WHAT!?"_ both Miley and Lilly exclaimed as one, turning to look at Mikayla.

"Me?" said Miley.

"Cheating?" yelled Lilly.

"_ON HIM?!"_ they finished together.

Mikayla looked back and forth at Miley and Lilly. "Okay, that was funny. Do you two practice that or something?"

"No, we don't practice it, it just happens," Miley quickly said. "Go back to the part where you said I was cheating on... him."

"After we broke up, he went back to you," Mikayla said, her tone of voice suggesting that Miley had either gone crazy or was teasing her. "He said you two were together for a little over a year, then he caught you screwing some other guy in his bed, so he dumped you and came crawling back to me then."

Miley gagged for a moment, covering her mouth with her hand as her brain battled her stomach for control. She looked over at Lilly, who looked not only nauseous but also more than a bit disgusted. After several seconds, Miley was fairly sure her brain was winning, so she slowly lowered her hand from her mouth. "Okay, that is _SO_ not the truth that it's not even funny," she said, shaking her head. "When did this supposedly happen?"

Mikayla thought for a bit, then she said, "He broke up with me about nine years ago, so I guess it would have been right after that. He said he was going to go find you, because you were the one he had always wanted to be with, and that I was just a good fuck."

"Nine years ago..." Miley said, thinking. "So we were fifteen then."

"When he came back to Seaview!" Lilly said suddenly. "When he tried to force you to—" She stopped before she finished saying, _make Hannah become his girlfriend again_, thankfully. "To go out with him again," she said quickly.

"Lucky for me I had someone watching my back," Miley said proudly.

"Two someones," Lilly clarified. "Oliver was a lifesaver for us." Miley nodded at the truth of Lilly's words.

"Wait, wait, wait," said Mikayla, her voice showing signs of irritation. "You mean, you _didn't_ start sleeping with him again?"

"_Hell_ no!" yelled Miley, loud enough to make Lilly's ears ring. "I never so much as did anything more than kiss him a few times, and that was before he took off the first time! I sure as hell didn't ever fool around with him, and there's no way on God's green planet that I _ever_ would have slept with him!"

"Miley has better taste than that," Lilly said, flashing Mikayla another angry glare.

Miley turned to look at her wife, gently gripping Lilly's chin as she looked into her burning blue eyes and said, "I have _much_ better taste than that." She and Lilly both grinned, then touched noses before kissing softly.

"What the fuck!" Mikayla nearly shouted. "You two are lesbians?"

Miley rolled her eyes, making Lilly giggle. "Mikayla, it's not about being gay or being straight, it's just that we just fell in love with each other," Miley explained. "That kinda went beyond who we were attracted to to begin with."

"And it was nine years ago that Jerk Ryan came back to Seaview and tried to take Miley away from me," said Lilly.

Miley grinned. "Fat chance of that. Nothin' could've pulled me away from you, honey." She turned back to Mikayla and added, "When Jake saw that Lilly and I were in love and that he had no chance with me, he tried to threaten me if I wouldn't go out with him again. So Lilly kicked his ass. He transferred out of the school, and we never saw him again. End of story."

"So when you pulled that shit on me at the movie set with him..."

"Was right before I got the nerve to tell Lilly that I loved her," Miley finished, nodding in agreement. "Seeing that she was willing to put up with another one of my goofy plans just because I thought it'd make me happy, well, that just made me appreciate how special she was even more." She looked back at Lilly and felt her smile grow once again. "It takes a special kind of love to put up with my crazy schemes," she said, kissing Lilly on the forehead.

"Got that right," agreed Lilly as Miley pulled her lips away from her skin.

"So you never went back to Jake after that stunt on the movie set?" asked Mikayla, taking it upon herself to sit down on the chair beside her.

"No," said Miley, shaking her head firmly. "A while after that he came back to Seaview, tried to get me back, Lilly and I told him about us, he got mad, Lilly stomped him, then another friend of ours broke his arm when he jumped us from behind."

"He sent us a note after that," Lilly said, "saying that he had gotten into drugs and that he was sorry and going into rehab somewhere. That was the last we've heard of him, and that's how we like it. He was nothing but trouble for my Miley." Lilly caught a glimpse of the wall clock. "Miles, we need to go get Brooke," she said. "It's twelve."

"Okay, hon," replied Miley. "Mikayla, we kinda need to go get our daughter. If you want to leave your number, maybe we could talk later?"

Mikayla nodded her head, "Sure, sure," she said. "Hey, you two have a daughter?" she asked as she walked to the door, Miley and Lilly right behind her.

"Yeah," Lilly said. "Hannah and Lola told us about what they were doing, about getting pregnant, and we thought that was just the coolest thing ever." Now the smile on her face was genuine, thinking about their daughter. They had practiced this cover story several times, and Lilly was extremely glad they had planned ahead for a situation like this. "Miles and I talked about it, and we decided we wanted to do it, too. Have a child together, from the two of us, I mean. So they got us in with their doctor, and we wound up pregnant at the same time they were."

"So how did you two meet them?" Mikayla asked, and now Miley could see a faint gleam in her dark eyes.

"They did a concert at our high school when we were still in school," said Miley, seeing a need to wrap this up soon. "We met them there." Miley didn't offer any other details; no need to give Mikayla any more chances to see through their disguises than absolutely necessary. "Now we really do need to go."

As Miley and Lilly began walking down the street to Lilly's parents' house, Mikayla called out, "I'll stop by later so we can talk more about Jake. I mean, since you wanted to be friends with me back then."

Miley stopped in her tracks. She slowly turned, releasing Lilly's hand she had been holding as she did so. She slowly walked back to Mikayla, stopping just two steps away from her. "That was nine years ago," she said as she looked into Mikayla's eyes. "And that was the last I ever heard from you until now, when you just happen to need somethin'. Plus you've given our _real_ friends nothin' but mean, hurtful remarks and tried to stir up as much trouble for them as you could. So why on earth would we even _consider_ bein' your friends now?"

"Lots of perks come with being friends with someone famous," said Mikayla, not backing down. "I could help you move out of this dumpy neighborhood, maybe even get you two a much nicer place to live, if you'd want to hang out with me some."

"Oh, and give you all sorts of dirt on Hannah and Lola?" replied Miley, her voice rising. "Fat chance!"

"Obviously _they're_ not helping you out!" said Mikayla, waving her hand at their house. "I mean, you're living out in some run-of-the-mill Malibu beach community, which is probably high class for you two, but you could be doing a _lot_ better than this place!"

Miley stared at Mikayla for long seconds, long enough for Lilly to walk back over to her wife and take her arm. "I cannot believe how low you really are," Miley finally said in a soft but dangerous voice. "This house is special to Lilly and me. It's where we grew up as friends, where we made love for the first time, and it's where we're gonna raise our family." Miley leaned in closer, anger boiling inside her. "How... fucking... _DARE_ you insult it!" she said right before she drew back and punched Mikayla in the jaw, sending her stumbling backwards to fall on her butt.

Miley noted that Lilly didn't make any move to further restrain her. She turned to look at Lilly, but Lilly just gave her an expectant look. "You not gonna try and hold me back, Lilly Bear?" Miley asked, now more than a bit amused.

Lilly shrugged her shoulders. "Why?" she said with a serious face. "Bitch had it coming."

Miley sputtered with laughter, getting Lilly to grin herself. Miley turned back to Mikayla, who was still sitting on the ground, apparently in shock. "If you want to talk about loser boy any more, Mikayla, I suggest you find some manners. Otherwise, don't bother to stop by." She turned around, smiling at Lilly as they resumed their walk down the sidewalk to retrieve their baby daughter.

"Nice punch," said Lilly approvingly.

"Why, thank you," Miley said happily, unable to restrain her smile.

Just a few minutes later they stepped up onto the front porch of Phil and Meredith Truscott. Lilly rang the doorbell, then she opened the door for Miley, following her wife inside. "Hey Mom, Dad!" Lilly called out as she closed the door behind them.

Down and across the street, a gunmetal gray Aston Martin Vanquish sat, its massive engine currently silent as Mikayla watched from behind an oversized pair of sunglasses. Several minutes later, Miley and Lilly came out of the house with Lilly holding a baby and Miley pushing a large stroller. Mikayla watched Miley carry the stroller down the few steps off the porch, setting it down and slowly pushing it as Lilly held and apparently talked to the baby she was carrying. "Well, damn. They really did have a baby," Mikayla muttered to herself.

As the trio approached her car's position, Mikayla tried to make herself as small as possible, hoping that neither of them would look across the street and notice her observing them. Fortunately, they appeared to be too engrossed in their child to pay attention to any exotic British sports cars that just happened to be in their vicinity. Mikayla turned discreetly to watch them continue on down the sidewalk back to their house, and now the sounds of their voices carried along the wind to where Mikayla was sitting. As she heard the happy sounds of mothers talking to and doting on their baby, Mikayla felt a heavy lump of ice in her chest, matched by a gnawing pit of nausea in her belly. As she heard the baby's happy laughs, she quickly started her car and rolled up her window, pulling away before the first tear made its way down her cheek.

**Author's Afterword:** So how many of you foresaw Mikayla paying a visit to Miley and Lilly? Well, if there _are_ any of you who did so, I'm impressed, because I really didn't see it coming myself. It does add an interesting dynamic to things, and that dynamic isn't over just yet. In fact, it's only going to grow over the next few chapters. Mikayla really do have some serious issues, and while I've seen some excellent deductions, nobody has really gotten _all_ of her past puzzled out just yet. (That's her therapist's job, anyway.) I keep trying to talk Mikayla out of her car, but she's not interested in parting with it, which ticks me off. I've never been big on fancy cars or sports cars, but I'd sure as hell drive a Vanquish if I had the $300,000 lying around with nothing better to do. Or whatever they cost now. It's more than I'd be willing to spend on a car, whatever it is.

Next chapter will bring us the hard rock showdown, where we'll see if Mikayla's scheming can finally push Hannah out of her spotlight. See you then!

Jo


	22. Chapter 22: Tension

**Author's Note:** Welcome back! This chapter has really taken some perseverance to get it finished. I've got an idea for a new story banging around in my head, and sometime I'm going to have to get it written so it'll leave me alone. However, this story remains my top priority. I still think thirty chapters sounds about right for this one, but even though we're on the last third of the story, things could still change. I had planned to have the entire concert in this chapter, but I can tell that it's going to run far too long. Therefore, I decided to break the concert up and go ahead and post this chapter while I finish the rest of the concert. I mean, it's already been two weeks, and I don't want it to be another week or two before I get anything posted.

For any of you just joining this story who might be confused about the names for Miley's and Lilly's daughter, her real name is Brooke Truscott, but her stage name is Megan Montana. Please don't be confused by the different names; Miley and Lilly only refer to her as Megan when they're out as Hannah and Lola.

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist or publication mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo K.

Chapter 22: Tension

_I'd walk the world for you babe_

_A thousand miles with you_

_I'd dry your tears of pain_

_A million times for you_

_I'd sell my soul for you babe_

_More money to burn with you_

_I'd give you all and have none babe_

_Just to have you here by me_

-Billy Idol, "Rebel Yell"

"So Hannah, what can we expect from your performance tonight at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame concert in Cleveland?"

As Miley sat in her chair on the set of _Mack and Mickey In the Morning_, she considered the question before she answered. "Well," Miley said as she smiled coyly, "I think that you can expect a Hannah Montana performance that's gonna be like nothin' anybody's ever seen before."

"So you think that you're going to rock harder than your challenger, Mikayla?" asked Mack. "Even though it's been, what, nearly three months since you've performed on stage?"

"Not to mention having a baby just a few weeks ago!" added his co-host, Mickey. "And how is that going, Hannah? I mean, this is the first for you and Lola, right?"

Miley nodded, more than happy to talk about her precious daughter. "It's amazing, Mickey!" she said happily, and the smile that spread across her face was radiant as she spoke. "I mean, it's the biggest change of our lives, really, but it's so totally worth it. Every bit of it."

"I bet you weren't thinking that way during labor, were you?" jibed Mack, a bit too loudly for Miley's taste, but several members of the audience laughed at his joke.

"Well, actually..." Miley began, hesitating as she considered how much to reveal about Brooke's birth. "The delivery was the most painful thing I think I've ever felt, that's for sure. But I had the most wonderful wife on earth there with me, holdin' my hand the whole time, and Lola, bless her heart, she helped me get through it."

"Did the epidural not work right?" asked Mickey. Miley suddenly remembered that Mickey had been pregnant at least twice over the last ten years, so she obviously understand childbirth quite well.

"No, Megan came so fast that we didn't have time for them to do an epidural," Miley said. "I don't think they even had time to give me anything for the pain at all. I didn't have an IV or any medicine at all, I don't think. I mean, it all happened so fast!" She took a moment to focus, willing the tears linked to those terrifying moments to stay tamped down. "There was a lot of bleeding, and then the baby started having some problems so they had to get her out really fast. There were... some complications, and for several hours Lola and I were really scared that we were gonna lose our baby girl." Miley carefully dabbed at her eyes, taking great care to not smudge her eyeliner or mascara. She was going to have to change the subject to something more positive, soon.

"I'm so sorry, Hannah," said Mickey, the tone of her conveying true sincerity. "I—We had no idea that there had been any problems with the delivery."

"Thank you," said Miley, closing her eyes as she refocused her self-control. "We spent the rest of the night holdin' her," Miley finally said after several seconds. "And with lots of prayers and lots of tears, she pulled through. Now she's doin' great, and we've enjoyed spending these last few weeks learnin' how to be mothers."

"Awww!" said Mickey suddenly, nearly interrupting Miley. Miley turned to look behind her, only to see Lilly in Lola's bright green wig, zebra-striped leather miniskirt, red shirt with checkered suspenders, blue fishnet stockings and white boots walking out of the wings and onto the stage. In her arms was baby Brooke, blinking grumpily at the bright lights of the television set but looking adorable nonetheless in a white and pink striped outfit.

"I thought her momma might want to show her off to everybody," said Lilly with a smile. She stopped beside Miley's chair and carefully handed their daughter to her wife, placing a quick kiss first on Miley's forehead, then one on Brooke's. Lilly looked into Miley's eyes, seeing a look of gratitude reflected behind those deep blue eyes that she knew so well. Lilly had felt Miley's inner turmoil despite her attempt to suppress it, so she had brought Brooke out to reassure her wife that things were fine now.

"Thank you, honey," Miley said as she hugged Lilly as soon as Brooke was settled in the bend of her right arm. Her tiny blue eyes had already fluttered closed again, her little chest once again rising and falling peacefully as she settled into the grip of her other mother. Miley looked at Mickey and Mack and said, "I'm so lucky to have a wife like her," surprised when her tears threatened to spill forth at the simple admission of how much Lilly meant to her.

"Kill me right fucking now," muttered Mikayla in a not-so-soft voice as she watched the live television show in one of the conference rooms at Dyseni Records. As the studio audience spontaneously applauded the touching display of love between Hannah, Lola and Megan Montana, Mikayla made up one-fifth of a significantly less receptive audience sequestered in the room at Dyseni.

"One day someone'll take you up on that," replied Margot Walters, Mikayla's manager whose attitude was possibly even more abrasive than that of the young singer. "Especially since you haven't done much about that personality of yours."

"Look, Mikayla," said Lonnie Walters, Dyseni's recently-promoted Vice President of Artist Relations. "We've done everything we possibly could to stack this thing in your favor. We've timed it so her band's scattered around the world, she's just had a baby and is rusty when it comes to performing, and we've set you up with a band that covers the song 'Hell Yeah' regularly since you're convinced that's what she'll be singing tonight. But I'm still concerned because you're refusing to use a pre-recorded track and lip sync at your performance."

"Of _course_ you are," said Mikayla sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

"Comments like that are one of the reasons why the public still prefers a lesbian over you in terms of album sales," Lonnie sharply replied.

Mikayla leaned forward across the long table, its polished wood surface gleaming beneath the fluorescent lights. "And comments like _that_ are why you couldn't make full VP by yourself," she coldly shot back. "It doesn't matter how much you stack the deck, _Lonnie_, I still have to be the one to play the hand. She's going to be singing live, so I am too. It's a matter of professionalism."

A loud smack on the table drew everyone's attention to Margot. "This just in from Hell," she said teasingly, "snow flurries forecast for the next week!" She smiled her typical cold smile as she fixed her eyes on Mikayla's increasingly defiant ones. "Since when did you care about being professional?" she asked.

Mikayla held Margot's glare for long seconds before finally saying, "Maybe I'm growing up a bit." She smiled as she added, "Why? Does that scare you?"

Margot leaned in slightly as she lowered her voice and answered, "If anyone in this room should be scared, little Missy, it's you. Particularly if you've suddenly found some integrity. It's a bit too late for that."

_God, I hate her_, thought Mikayla for about the millionth time. But Margot was right. She still held the means to destroy her entire career, to hurt not just Mikayla deeply but also the handful of people she still truly cared about. She crossed her arms and sat back in her seat, turning her head to stare out the window.

"Use the pre-recorded track," Margot said.

"NO!" Everyone once again turned to look at Mikayla, now standing. "I'm okay with all of this except the lip-syncing! If you don't believe me when I say that I have to sing this myself, then think about what'll happen if something goes wrong with the backing track! It's not just _my_ career that'll die miserably; it'll take Dyseni down with it, too! I may be young, but I _do_ know what happened with Milli Vanilli."

That was a strained silence in the room before Vera Blaike spoke up. While her exact position in the hierarchy at Dyseni Records remained nebulous, everyone knew it was significantly higher than anyone else in the room at present. "Mikayla is right, on both counts," Vera said calmly. "It's taking an unnecessary risk at tonight's concert to use pre-recorded vocals."

"Unnecessary? Have you heard her first few rehearsals?" spit Margot furiously.

"I think Mikayla deserves the chance—no, I think she's earned the right to sing for herself tonight. I've never been a big fan of the approach you and Margot have taken to promoting Mikayla here, Lonnie, but I've let you manage your artist as you chose."

"And it's worked," said Lonnie. "Her album just went double platinum, and every confrontation between her and Montana spikes the sales numbers again. Her follow-up album is already being projected to go platinum the first three weeks. You can't argue with results, Vera." An icy stare from his boss caused him to freeze. "Ms. Blaike, sorry."

"Thank you," Vera said dismissively before turning to Mikayla. "Mikayla, this is your show," she said to the young woman. "Win or lose, this company is putting its faith in you."

Mikayla felt her chest tighten slightly, something she wasn't expecting. "I won't screw this up, Ms. Blaike, I promise."

Two miles away, Miley and Lilly made their way off the stage as the morning show finally came to an end. Brooke had started to stir a few minutes ago, and Miley knew that she was going to be exceedingly hungry quite soon. "Okay, thanks again for havin' us on the show this morning!" she said pleasantly as Lilly gathered their diaper bag and purses. Roxy was back on duty, expertly handling the crowds that had gathered outside the television studio and making a lane for the two young mothers to walk to their limousine. Their suitcases were already in the trunk since they were going straight to the airport for their private flight to Cleveland, Ohio.

After everyone had gotten settled in the limousine and the long ebony vehicle had pulled away into the late morning Los Angeles traffic, Lilly began to feed Brooke a bottle while she talked to her daughter, coaxing a smile from her tiny mouth. Once she even let the bottle fall out of her mouth, she was grinning so widely. "You are just the cutest little thing, yes you are," Lilly cooed as Miley leaned over and watched. Despite the different hair colors, Brooke had no difficulty recognizing her mothers instantly, and Miley was rewarded with her own happy smile when Brooke's eyes fell on her face.

"She looks so much like you when she smiles like that," Miley said, reaching across the carseat to rub her wife's back until the soft chiming of her cell phone drew Miley's attention away from her family. The generic ring meant that this was either a number Miley didn't recognize or hadn't assigned a specific ring to yet. It was her personal phone, at least, not her Hannah phone, so there was a fairly long list of people who could be calling her. "Hello?" she said as she answered the phone.

"_Hey Miley!"_ said a voice with a familiar Tennessee accent.

"Amy?" asked Miley, pleasantly surprised to hear from their friend back in Misty Hollow, Tennessee. "How are ya'll doin'? Takin' care of your girlfriend?" Miley's childhood friend Amy Hearon and her roommate (and girlfriend) Dee Zaharias had been unable to make it out to California for Brooke's birth due to commitments at their respective places of work and their college classes, and it had been several months since the four friends had seen each other.

Amy and Dee had both graduated from a small private school called Maryville College not that far away from Misty Hollow. They had moved into an apartment between the Hollow and school following their graduation; there they were careful to maintain appearances of sleeping in separate bedrooms due to frequent visits from both girls' parents. Dee was working part-time and taking graduate-level classes as she worked toward a Master's degree in adolescent psychology, while Amy was working full-time for a local business of some sort. Miley felt bad that she didn't remember exactly where either of them worked, but then things _had_ been a bit hectic over the last year.

"_Yeah, been tryin' to, at least. You know how big a job that can be."_

Miley laughed softly. "Yep, those women can be a handful, let me tell ya," she said, winking at Lilly, who didn't seem the least bit offended at her wife's words.

"_Actually, Dee and I were thinkin' about maybe comin' out there to see you two and the baby this week. That is, if the offer still stands, of course."_

"Of course the offer still stands, Dee," Miley said, looking at Lilly. "When are you lookin' at comin' out here for a bit?"

"_Ummm... how about tomorrow?"_

"Wow, that's, uh, really soon," Miley said, running through what she and Lilly had scheduled to do tomorrow. An interview of some sort, a photo shoot for some magazine, maybe something else—but this was two of their friends, and from the undertone in Amy's voice, something was bothering her. "But I think we might be able to move some stuff around for the two of you," Miley said, trying carefully to not let any concern show through in her voice.

"_Okay, thanks Miley,"_ said Amy. _"Dee and me kind of need some time for things to cool down here. Thanks much for lettin' us come out there for a few days."_

"No problem, Amy. Send me a text with your flight info and when it'll be arrivin' so we can meet you two."

"_Will do, Miley. See you soon!"_

"Be careful, Amy. Say hi to Dee for us!" She hung up the phone, turning to look at her best friend.

"How soon are they talking about flying out?" asked Lilly, her face now neutral as she registered Miley's flash of concern.

"Tomorrow," said Miley with a calm voice.

"Whoa." Lilly sat back and thought, much like her wife had just done. "Geez, what else is gonna hit us this week?" Miley reached over to smack Lilly for tempting fate when Lilly's phone buzzed.

"Told you!" Miley hissed, pointing at her best friend.

"You didn't say anything!" Lilly replied, half teasing and half serious. She opened her phone and said, "Hello?" as she hoped that Fate wasn't about to flip her on the nose.

"_I sure as hell hope you two are on your way."_

"Hey, Jen," said Lilly with a smile. "Yeah, we're almost at the airport."

"_Okay, good. Tell Hannah that we've got everything set up like she wanted, and that her band should be here in plenty of time for equipment check."_

"Will do," replied Lilly. She looked over at her wife, who was giving her a playful look in return. "So, Jen, do _you_ know what song my wife is singing tonight? Because she still won't tell me."

"I told you, I want it to be a surprise," said Miley, her voice slightly teasing.

Lilly continued to stare at Miley, who didn't seem ready to give an inch, before saying, "Okay, Jen, then I guess we'll see you later this evening."

"_Okay, boss. Oh, and when you get here there's something I want to get your approval on before I do anything about it. Plus there's, shall we say, a unique opportunity for Hannah to get some prime-time TV exposure, but I'll probably need you to help me talk her into it."_

_That's interesting Two interestings, to be exact.._ "Okay, sounds good," Lilly said. "See you in a couple of hours." She closed the connection and slipped her phone back into her purse. "You know I'm just wanting to have every reassurance possible that you're going to blow Mikayla away tonight, don't you, honey?" she asked Miley, running her fingers lightly through Hannah's long, straight blonde hair. Lilly could feel herself becoming excited once again at being able to touch Hannah Montana this way—along with several other very pleasurable ways—and a slight shiver made its way across her body, revealing her excitement in a very obvious way to her wife.

"Looks like somebody still gets turned on by making love to a celebrity," Miley teased as she stared into Lilly's deep cobalt eyes. "Just like I do," she added, "especially to the sexiest actress in Hollywood." She leaned across the carseat and met Lilly's lips with her own, lingering for several delicious seconds as they let themselves fall into each other's hearts again, each young woman trusting the other completely with not only her heart but her soul as well.

After her lips were tingling, Lilly carefully pulled away, dipping forward to place one more quick peck on Miley's soft lips, the sweet taste of her mango lip gloss dancing across her tongue. "Mm, that was nice," said Lilly, finally blinking her eyes open to stare into Miley's stunning heavy-lidded blue eyes. "But don't think that's going to distract me to where I stop asking you what song you're going to sing."

Miley playfully rolled her bright eyes and sighed dramatically. "Are you worried that I'm gonna pull one like when Avril sang Metallica's 'Fuel' at that MTV show a few years back?" she asked, the hint of an amused smile on her lips. She and Lilly clearly remembered the rather infamous event; with the help of the Internet, that mismatched performance would most likely live on forever, despite the singer's wishes otherwise.

"Well, I know you wouldn't screw up _that_ badly—"

"Gee, thanks," said Miley with a sour face.

"—But yeah, I just want to make sure that you've got a good song that'll work well with you and your band." Lilly paused before adding, "Whomever that may be, since I haven't been let in on that secret, either."

"The band's a surprise too," said Miley. "And I've told you all this for the last two weeks, honey, just like I told you I want to see the happy look on your face as you watch me sing tonight." She took Lilly's right hand where she had rested it on the side of the carseat. "Sweetheart, you trust me, right?"

Lilly looked up and back into Miley's eyes. She could see that Miley was becoming troubled by keeping this secret from Lilly, even it she would appreciate the surprise once it was over. _If I pushed just a bit more, she'd break down and tell me, I know it. And in the past I might have done just that. But we're not silly little girls anymore, or jealous teenagers. I trust Miley with my life and with my baby's life. The least I can do is play along with her surprise for me._ With a smile, Lilly said, "Yes, Miles. I trust you. And I promise I'll quit pestering you about telling me what you're singing tonight."

"Or who my band is?"

"Or who your band is," Lilly agreed, nodding her head as she smiled. "I'll just relax and let you do all the hard work once we get there."

Miley smiled. "Good."

While Hannah and Lola boarded their private jet, on the other side of Los Angeles Mikayla haltingly got out of the back of her own limousine. She shivered despite the warm temperature; it was a reaction that she had developed to cemeteries several years ago. In fact, it was a reaction that had come about because of the very cemetery she was in. She knew that she could never forget the heartbreak of that funeral, not in a thousand years. For most of Los Angeles and the music industry as a whole, the death of the aspiring young singer Kasey Gomez was an event noticed by few and followed by pretty much no one. For her best friend since childhood, however, it was a tragedy that could never be forgotten... or forgiven.

"We don't much time, Miss," said the driver, his window rolled down slightly.

"I know," Mikayla replied, unable to take her eyes off the modest tombstone exactly ninety-seven steps away. She knew every step acutely, painfully, each one a silent accusation toward herself. _She'd still be alive if you hadn't left her at that party. It's your fault, you selfish bitch, and nothing you do will _ever_ bring your best friend back._

Mikayla shook her head tersely and began her walk forward. She carried a small bouquet of daisies, like she always did when she visited Kasey's grave. _Well,_ she thought somberly, _at least since I quit drinking. And drugs. Back then I'd generally have something else with me when I came here._ She sped up her steps, moving from the asphalt to the soft grass. This cemetery always was well-maintained, something that she knew Kasey and her love for nature would have appreciated.

As she reached the small light gray tombstone, Mikayla knelt down onto her knees. She carefully laid the flowers on the grass just in front of the granite marker, leaning a few petals against the cool stone. She smiled sadly as she said, "I should come visit you more, Kase. I know I should. But lately I've been..." What _had_ she been doing, exactly? "I guess I've been hiding from you, girlfriend," she admitted sadly.

She sighed as she idly pushed one of the daisies' stems slightly, moving back into position with its neighbors. "I don't think you'd have been too proud of what I've become, Kase. I mean, I did finally get off the drugs and booze. It took a few more years after you died, and it's been stupid hard to stay straight some times over this last two years. Sometimes there's not a damn thing I'd like better than to just get so fucking high that I don't know what world I'm in, but I'm not going back there. Not for you, not for me, not for Esme. You and her are the reasons why I'm staying clean, because all I really have left of either of you is what you think of me." Mikayla smiled softly. "You should see her, Kasey. She was out here not too long ago, but I couldn't bring her here to see your grave, not yet. But she's so smart that it's not funny, and she's got the biggest heart I've ever seen.

Mikayla stared at the daisies for a minute or two before she haltingly said, "I took her to see Hannah while she was out here. I figured that her record company would throw us out and make Es think that she and Lola were really bitches, but they took us right in. Hannah and Lola even gave her all this stuff that they signed for her, too. I couldn't believe it. I mean, they're stupid gullible, yeah, but they really are nice, I guess. Petey said that once she got back to Texas she wore the shirt Lola signed for her for three days straight before he finally took it off her while she was asleep."

Mikayla sucked in a breath as she remembered something else. "Jake called the other day," she said coolly. "The prick. I can't even believe he had the nerve to call and ask for me, not after what he did to... to us. But don't worry, I didn't talk to him. I left him a message at the number he left telling him to go fuck himself and that if he ever tried to call me again, I'd cut off his dick and watch him bleed to death." A tear slid from her left eye as she stared at the bundle of flowers on the grass, white and yellow contrasting with the dark green beneath the petals and stems. "Every time I think of him, I wish he had been the one killed in that car wreck instead of you, Kasey," she said with a tight voice. "And then... then I wish it had been me." She reached out to touch the stone, always cool to her touch. "You'd have been a great singer, Kase, I know it. I just got lucky and got my break before you did. But you'd have made it too, even if I'd had to blow everybody in the company to get you a contract." She laughed, and it wasn't as bitter as it could have been. "Hell, I guess we were too young back then to really pull something like that, but I would've done it for you, girlfriend. I promise."

Mikayla stood slowly, using the granite stone to balance herself as she did so. "I'm off to Cleveland tonight. I challenged Hannah to a hard rock showdown tonight, and she took the bait. I mean, there's got to be _something_ the bitch can't sing, right?" She bent over and placed a kiss against the cold stone, bitter on her lips every time they touched the roughened top of the headstone. "Wish me luck, girl," she said softly. "I wish you were here, Kasey, so, so much. But since you're not, I'm gonna make it big for both of us. As big as we'd always dreamed, just like we promised each other." She ran her fingers across the rough surface on the top of the stone marker. "Goodbye, Kase," she said, then she turned and walked back to the waiting limousine, wiping at her eyes as she did so.

As the concert began that evening, Miley found herself once again checking that her stage had been set up appropriately. She didn't normally work much with pyrotechnics, but she wanted to make a statement tonight, and the performance she had planned out was designed to do just that. She grinned to herself as she let herself think about Lilly's curiosity, which had to be burning fiercely at the moment. Miley had kept not only the song and her band members secret from everyone, including her wife, but also her outfit and even the design of the stage itself. Miley walked down the long catwalk, lifting the thick drape wrapped around the tall structure at the mini-stage on the catwalk's end. She checked the structure, tugging on it to make sure it was securely in place. She smiled, then she replaced the drape carefully.

_Yeah, tonight's performance is gonna open a few eyes. And probably piss more than a few people off, too. But I made sure that the producers would run that disclaimer suggesting that Hannah's fans under twelve not watch tonight's performance several times during the show—heck, the whole show's rated TV-14 anyway, and I'm not going on stage until after ten. That should be plenty late enough for most of 'em to be in bed, and their parents should take care of the rest._ She peeked down at where Lilly would be sitting during her performance—another surprise for her wife—and nodded as she saw that the chair had been elevated enough to give Lilly a clear view of the entire performance. _Perfect._

Miley turned and walked back along the elevated walkway to the main stage, checking her spots and the clearly marked pyro placements. She had practiced walking around them for two weeks in her secret studio back in Los Angeles, but her safety was worth checking them one more time. Finally satisfied, she walked back over to the backstage entrance and the two security guards posted there. "Make sure nobody gets back here without my approval," Miley said seriously.

"Even your wife?" asked one of the men.

Miley gave him a patient look. He was new, and he still hadn't figured out the way everything worked with Hannah and Lola. "My wife can go anywhere she wants," Miley said. "Absolutely nothing is off-limits to her, okay?"

"Yes ma'am."

Miley looked at the other security guard, one of longest-tenured members of Hannah's road crew. "Tony, you not got around to tellin' this new fella about Lola and me and how we do things?" she asked, patting the quite large man's arm playfully as he grinned in response. However, Miley's talk was cut short when she saw a most unwelcome brunette turn around a corner a hundred feet away. Miley's smile disappeared as she quickly strode toward Mikayla, intercepting her before her rival could get any closer.

"You lost, Mikayla?" Miley asked coldly. "Or just eager to get your beatin' over with?"

"No, I was just making sure that you weren't so badly out of shape that you couldn't go on," Mikayla said with a sniff. _Shit. She looks really good. Oh well. I can at least take a shot at her and see what happens. _ "So, Hannah, are those new pants you're wearing? I don't remember them being so tight before."

Miley fought back the urge to smack the smirk off Mikayla's face, but just barely. "Nope, these fit me as well as they always have," she replied calmly. "In fact, I'm actually a few pounds lighter than I was before I got pregnant. Lola's gotten me into amazing shape." Miley let herself smile now. "You know, I suppose I could come up with some witty putdown for you, but that might give you the very incorrect impression that I cared about what you said."

The buzz of Miley's phone drew her attention away from Mikayla. "See you on stage," Miley said without even a hint of softness before striding past the sulking brunette. She read the text message from Lilly as she walked back to her dressing room, reaching the relative calm in just two minutes.

"Hey hon," she said cheerfully as she saw Lilly load a plate with smoked salmon. Tonight her wife was clad in a bright pink and black outfit that Lilly had described as "Lolita-Gothic" when she bought it three weeks ago. The frilly miniskirt with white ruffles did come down enough to cover her hips but not much else, showing off nearly all of her black stockings with pink swirls covering them. For her hair, she had chosen to go with Lola's bright white wig, completing the odd but rather attractive look for Lola tonight.

Lilly mumbled something happily as she saw Miley walk in, rolling her eyes as she realized just how garbled her speech was with her mouth full of food. "Sorry," she said after finally swallowing. "I said, these people know how to treat their performers! And their significant others, of course."

Miley crossed the dressing room, smaller than usual for Hannah but just fine for her needs. She stood in front of Lilly, leaning into her best friend but being careful to not dislodge the plate Lilly was firmly holding. "That good, huh?" Miley asked as she put her arms around her wife, resting her forehead against Lilly as they looked into each other's eyes.

"Pretty good," said Lilly with a nod of her head, "but I think I see something better." She set the plate down on the table beside them, wrapping her arms around Miley's waist as she pulled her wife even closer. "So, you got anything special planned for me tonight since we have a sitter for our baby girl?" she murmured as she began to gently kiss Miley's lovely neck.

"Could be," replied Miley, her voice dreamy in its distraction at Lilly's hands. "Did Jen really offer to watch her for us?"

"Yeah, but I think Roxy's taking her when it's bedtime, which is probably best for all of us. Now, as for planning something special for me... Is it anything that's going to make me want you even more than I do right now?"

Miley smiled, tipping her head further back to let Lilly's lips cover more of her soft skin. "Oh yeah," she said confidently. "In fact, I think you're gonna have trouble controllin' yourself until we get back to our hotel room."

"Who says I'm controlled right now?" whispered Lilly, her warm breath sending tingles around Miley's neck as she spoke. "Jen's watching our daughter in the next room. I seem to have you all to myself for a bit, Mrs. Montana." Lilly pulled her head back and firmly turned Miley around, pushing her next to the back wall of the dressing room as she slid one hand up Miley's shirt. She smiled at the soft exhalation she could feel as much as hear from her best friend, running the fingertips of her left hand up and down Miley's stomach and chest quickly before removing her hand. She undid the button on Miley's jeans before Miley could question why she had stopped, unzipping her wife's pants before sliding her right hand down into Miley's panties and allowing her left hand to resume its travels up and down Miley's chest.

"Are you hot for me, Hannah?" Lilly whispered, her own voice full of desire as she breathed the words against the back of Miley's neck. "Mmmm, you are, aren't you?" she added, licking her lips at the burning wetness her middle finger smoothly slid through before tenderly entering her Miley.

Miley's mouth opened in a silent gasp as her head and neck stiffened against the wall, her hips pushing back against Lilly as her legs spread wide of their own accord, trying to draw her lover in deeper. She snapped her mouth closed as Lilly began to work her finger back and forth deep inside her, alternating in and out, forward and back, round and round in all the patterns she knew Miley loved. Miley heard her breathing become faster but more shallow as the tightness inside her pelvis began to constrict even more, dancing in tune with the movements of her wife's fingers and hands.

"Yesss," Lilly hissed across Miley's ear, triggering an eruption of ecstasy throughout Miley's body. "Yeah, that's my Hannah," Lilly whispered as she held Miley's shaking body. "So wet, so sexy, aren't you, baby?" She felt Miley's free left hand grip her own hand through her tight leather pants, holding Lilly's finger where it nestled deep inside her wife. "And I love you with everything I have, honey," Lilly added with soft kisses against Miley's shoulders, triggering another spasm throughout her wife's quivering body.

Miley couldn't speak for several moments, so instead she just forcibly held Lilly's hand in her pants until she could breath sufficiently to speak again. Miley turned her upper body and head so that she could look at Lilly's face and say, "Have I told you lately how much I love you, Lola?"

Lilly snickered happily. She put a soft kiss on Miley's lips as she felt Miley's grip release her hand. She slid her fingers gently out of her best friend and then her hand from Miley's pants. "You don't have to tell me, honey, because I already know. But go ahead if you must," she added as she batted her long eyelashes at Miley.

Miley grinned, shaking her head. "I love you more than anything on this earth, Lola," she said, meaning every word. "So what brought on that very lovely surprise?"

Lilly looked into Miley's eyes as she said, "Because I could tell you were a teensy bit nervous about tonight, and I wanted to do something to get rid of any worries that you might have." Her expression grew more serious as she pulled Miley close to her again, staring deep into her eyes as she said, "Hannah, you are the most amazing singer and performer that I've ever seen. Just because you've been gone a month or two doesn't do anything to change that. You're gonna get out there on that stage and sing... whatever song you're gonna be singing tonight, since you won't tell me—"

Miley laughed, kissing Lilly as she continued.

"—And you're gonna blow everybody away again! Because that's what superstars like you do, honey." She smiled at the adoring look on Miley's face. "You feel more relaxed now?"

Miley nodded slowly. "Oh yeah," she said with a soft voice. "Getting some right before a concert always does the trick for this rock star," she added with a wry grin and a wink.

Lilly grinned widely. "Good thing I was here, then, huh?"

"Yup. A very good thing. Otherwise I'd've been all tense out there."

"Well, we can't have that," Lilly said, playing along as she shook her head grandly. "I probably ought to let you get dressed, shouldn't I?" she asked, already knowing the answer.

"Yeah," replied Miley. "Go keep an eye on the pouty princess for me?"

"Of course," Lilly said, dipping her head slightly. "I'll send her all the dirty looks I can muster up."

"Careful, she might think you're flirtin' with her," teased Miley as she walked Lilly to the dressing room door.

"EW!" Lilly said, shaking her entire body in disgust. "No no no! The only person I let flirt with me is _you,_ Hannah."

"Better be," Miley said, feeling her confidence build inside her. Lilly's little sexual interlude had most definitely rekindled the spark inside Hannah Montana, and Miley could feel that energy begin to swell, aching to be released on stage. "Love you, Lola," she said, taking Lilly into her arms for a deep kiss.

After nearly a minute, the two reluctantly stepped out of their embrace, still looking in each other's eyes. "You kick some ass for me tonight, sweetheart," said Lilly, holding up a fist in front of her face.

"Count on it," Miley said with a smile. "See you out there, lover."

**Author's Afterword:** Okay, the next chapter should be up faster than the intervals for the last three chapters. I hope. Sometime I'm going to have to get that other story idea written out, but I've promised a few people that I'll finish "Broken Wings" as soon as time permits. Sorry for the long delays for both that story's final chapter and for the last few chapters of this story, but life has a way of draining all that spare time you think you have. Hope everyone enjoyed this chapter, and I'll get the next chapter up as soon as possible. See you soon!

Jo


	23. Chapter 23: Go Big or Go Home

**Author's Note:** Okay, I owe everyone an apology for it taking so darn long to get this chapter posted. My life has been topsy-turvy over the last month, and it's been impossible to find time to properly work on this chapter. Things have been good, very good, but I've had to devote what would have been writing time to other situations that demanded my full attention. Since it's been so long between the last chapter and this one, I recommend you go back and re-read Chapter 22 before proceeding with this chapter to make sure that certain events are fresh in your minds as you read this chapter.

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist or publication mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo K.

Chapter 23: Go Big or Go Home

_It's just my humble opinion_

_But it's one that I believe in_

_You don't deserve a point of view_

_If the only thing you see is you_

-Paramore, "Playing God"

Lilly found her feet nervously tapping as The Donnas, the act before Mikayla's scheduled performance, tore through their four-song set. She knew that Miley would do a great job, but there was still some concern in her heart.

She looked around the backstage area where she had given Miley her good luck kiss just minutes before, with Miley seeing that kiss and raising her a lingering squeeze of her butt. Normally Lilly would have been back in Hannah's dressing room as Miley got dressed, but Miley had insisted on surprising Lilly with her outfit tonight as well.

_You and your surprises, woman,_ Lilly thought, shaking her head but still smiling. _You drive me crazy with them, but they're oh-so-sweet when they work out just right._ As the Donnas finished their last song, the announcer immediately told the crowd about the rock-off challenge posed by Mikayla to Hannah, with a surge of cheers as a result.

"_And now our first performer in tonight's head-to-head contest, our challenger... Mikayla!"_

Lilly scowled briefly as Mikayla's band began to play, louder than usual for them. In fact, the band looked different than the few performers Lilly could recall from the handful of times she had watched Mikayla sing. It only took a few seconds for Lilly to also recognize the song that Mikayla's band was playing: "Hell Yeah," originally done by the band Rev Theory. Miley had performed the song with Hannah's full band as a secret surprise meant only for Lilly several years ago, but bootleg video footage of the performance quickly made its way around the Internet and inadvertently established some serious rock star credibility for Hannah Montana.

Lilly smiled to herself despite the outrage seething inside her at Mikayla's very blatant attempt to steal Hannah's thunder by playing that particular song. _We were both concerned—not worried, just concerned—about what that video would do to Hannah's image, and darn if it didn't wind up helping it. Now this bitch wants to steal from what my woman did for me, but she forgot one teensy detail: she can't sing like Miley can._

After less than a minute, the limitations of Mikayla's voice were showing themselves to Lilly's trained ears. _Her voice is all wrong for this song; it's too high-pitched and she can't hold the notes the way Miley can. But her band's doing a great job of playing the music, and her dancers are totally owning the stage. Where the heck did that choreography come from?_

"Whatcha think?" said a comforting voice from just over Lilly's shoulder. Lilly smiled as she reached back behind her, letting her wife slide her fingers into her outstretched hand. She wasn't surprised in the least; the warmth in her chest had been telling her that Miley was in close proximity for the last few seconds.

"I think she's singing exactly like you thought she would," said Lilly, squeezing Miley's hand. "She just doesn't have a voice really suited for rock and roll."

"Nah," said Miley, stepping forward enough for Lilly to see that she was wearing a black leather trenchcoat that covered her entire body down to her ankles. Hannah's long, straight blonde hair and unlaced black leather combat boots were the only details that Lilly could see with the coat tightly closed. "Her voice takes a lot of processin' to make it sound the way it does on her albums. Her vocal range is okay for singin' pop songs, but she's never really improved much on what she could do naturally."

Lilly smirked as she turned to look at the gorgeous pop star that Lola was lucky enough to call her wife. "Says Hannah Montana, who had a better singing voice and more talent at three than most singers in their prime," she said, kissing Miley's nose softly. "Your voice is great for rock and roll, honey, especially when you drop it into that deep, sexy register that you do so darn well." Lilly shivered briefly as she thought back to the times when Miley would sing for her while they lay in bed together, that sweet, sultry voice sending skitters of electricity throughout Lilly's body. Lilly stepped forward and hugged Miley tightly, closing her eyes and breathing in the scent of Hannah. Part Miley, part Hannah's wig, part Hannah's perfume and part sexy, it was a smell different than Miley's, but it turned Lola on just as much as Miley's scent excited Lilly. "Any last clues to what you're singing tonight?" Lilly asked as they embraced.

Miley laughed softly, then she pulled back enough for Lilly to see her face. "Same theme as always for Hannah," she said, her voice sending thrills down Lilly's back. "Go big or go home." Miley smiled as she thought ahead to the performance she had planned out for her lovely wife. "I got a special seat reserved for you," she murmured as she brushed her mouth against Lilly's strawberry-flavored lips.

"Oh yeah?" replied Lilly, interest evident in her voice. "Do I get a good view of that sexy Hannah Montana?"

"Mm hmm," said Miley, staring deep into Lilly's eyes brilliant blue eyes with an intensity that made Lilly shiver involuntarily. "You get the _best_ view," she finally said, not breaking eye contact as she spoke slowly. "And then..."

Lilly was leaning into Miley's body, hovering as she waited for the rest of her lover's sentence. She registered Miley's arms wrapping around her body, a hand sliding up the back of her shirt, another teasingly dipping beneath the waistband of her skirt.

"...you get to take me home," Miley whispered, "and make love to me for the rest of our lives."

Lilly grinned, her eyes tightly closed as she rested her head against Miley's neck. "Sounds like a good deal to me," she said in reply. "Now you need to get ready to kick some whiny stuck-up ass."

"Okay," said Miley, kissing Lilly lovingly, longingly before they pulled apart. "Roxy'll take you to your seat for tonight's performance," she said seriously, once again the consummate professional. "Hope you enjoy the show," she added before walking away with a lingering smile for her wife.

"Somehow I think it's going to blow me away," Lilly said to herself before she turned to find Roxy. She wanted to make sure she was seated early enough to not miss anything.

As Mikayla finished her first song and immediately began to sing a different one, Lilly reached her seat. She was at the end of the small platform connected to the stage Miley would be performing on by a long elevated catwalk, essentially dividing the floor in front of the stage into two halves. Lilly's seat was in a recess just off the small platform, leaving her head roughly level with where Miley's waist would be if Miley was standing in front of her.

Lilly took her seat, fuming at the presumption of Mikayla to sing a second song but also grimly smiling at the brunette's unwise choice for a second song: "Enter Sandman," by Metallica. _We thought it was only going to be one song each, a head-to-head contest. But apparently Miss Bitch thought that she was too good to just do one song. Well, at least she picked a song that her squeaky voice has no chance of pulling off smoothly._ "Geez, learn from poor Avril," Lilly said, more to herself than to Mikayla, who was nearly sixty yards away. "Don't try to sing a Metallica song with a chipmunk voice."

She tapped the toe of her pink heels against the metal of the stage, turning to look at the large cloth-covered object on the small platform just a few feet in front of her. Whatever it was, it was firmly in the center of the platform and stood at least ten feet high. Thick black fabric encircled the tall object, preventing Lilly from seeing exactly what lay beneath it. Briefly she considered peeking, but she managed to contain her curiosity. Barely.

As Lilly tuned out Mikayla's voice, she found herself torn internally when it came to her feelings about Hannah's rival. After Mikayla's surprise visit to their house, Lilly found that part of her wanted to get to know Mikayla better, to try and find out what motivated her to act the way she did and try to help her. However, that part was rather small compared to the rest of Lilly's feelings regarding Mikayla, most of which involved stomping the smart-mouthed woman into the ground. She smiled as she thought about how big a fit Mikayla would throw when she lost tonight. For Lilly, there was absolutely no doubt as to who would walk away the winner tonight. The rest of the world would realize that in just a few minutes.

Movement on the darkened stage drew Lilly's gaze out of its unfocused state. _Hmmm. Whom exactly _did_ you get to play for you tonight, Hannah Montana?_ She scrutinized what details she could, but in the deeply shadowed recesses of the stage there were precious few details that she could discern. Her eyes drifted over to a new silhouette as it walked across the stage. _Now _that_ walk I can recognize from a mile away. She has a little strut in her step as Hannah that she doesn't as Miley, and it's awfully cute._ As she watched Miley's shadowy form move back and forth, Lilly caught a glimpse of long braids hanging from the head of one of the musicians hidden in the dark. The size of the torso strongly suggested a man, but the long braids, one on each side of the person's head, suggested it could be a woman. A hint of recognition flickered in her mind, but she was unable to make a solid connection to any memory just yet.

As Mikayla finished her second song—_finally,_ as Lilly thought—the crowd began to move, leaving the stage where Mikayla had performed to take better positions in front of the opposite stage. Lilly smiled as she looked behind her and to the sides; fans were already forming up a dozen rows deep in front of Hannah's stage, and the rest of the crowd was shifting to move closer still. Massive video screens had been set up on the sides of the outdoor venue to ensure that everyone could get a good view of all of the night's performers, but for thousands of fans nothing would be the same as being within shouting distance of Hannah Montana.

After several minutes to allow people adequate time to settle into their new positions, the announcer's voice came across the loudspeakers.

"_And now for tonight's other contestant in our Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Rock-Off, in her first performance back after having a _freaking baby _just two months ago—and let me tell you, she looks damn fine for a new mom—tonight's reigning champion, Hannah Montana!"_

Applause, whistles and screams all erupted from the crowd as the house lights went off, plunging the entire venue into blackness. The only lights that could be seen were floating among the sea of fans in front of the stages, subtle movements indicating they were still shifting to get the best possible view for this next performance.

Lilly smiled as the crowd continued to shriek for her wife to appear on stage. The audience's cheers had always made Lilly feel even more special to have Miley, first as a friend, then as a lover and finally as a wife, and tonight was no exception. Lilly added her own applause and cheers to those of the audience, adding a sharp whistle that she knew Miley would hear and recognize. She grinned as she yelled, "You rock my world, Hannah Montana!"

The cheers redoubled as Miley came walking out of the blackness into the bright embrace of an overhead spotlight, her long black trenchcoat still covering her from neck to ankles. Lilly grinned and clapped as Miley looked down the elevated walkway and locked gazes with her best friend. Miley's smile intensified, showing her teeth as she beamed her love in Lilly's direction. Lilly blew her wife a kiss, a gesture that Miley most likely couldn't see but would certainly feel. Lilly eased her clapping as she saw Miley raise the microphone to her lips.

"_Hey, Cleveland!"_ Miley shouted, waving to the crowd. That elicited another thunderous wave of applause and screams which took several more seconds to fade to a level where Miley's voice could be heard clearly by everyone. _"Is everybody here ready to rock and rock hard?"_

Lilly snickered to herself as the crowd once again roared in affirmation to her wife's words. _She's a one in a billion singer, but she can sure work a crowd, too._

"_That's good!"_ Miley said, talking over the whistles and cheers as they began to fade again. _"I'm, uh, ready to show you a slightly different side of Hannah Montana tonight,"_ she said, flashing a sly grin as she spoke. _"But I would like to offer a teensy piece of advice to that girl who was just singin'."_

Lilly covered her mouth with her hand in an attempt to keep from laughing. _Oh, Miley, Miley, Miley. Calling her out right before you crush her? You are too bad._ Lilly unconsciously smiled as her train of thought continued, _But it _really_ turns me on when you act all rock star for me. Rawr._

Miley pointed in the air in the direction of Mikayla's stage, where she figured the singer would be watching Hannah's performance. _"Mikayla, honey, if you're gonna try to sing a Metallica song, at least have the balls to GET Metallica!"_

A flash went through Lilly's mind as her brain finally made the connection about the musician with the braids. _No way, no freaking way! How could she—?_

"_GIVE ME FUEL, GIVE ME FIRE, GIVE ME THAT WHICH I DESIRE!"_ Miley sang out loudly. _"WHOOO!"_ As she hit the last few words, the booming of drums, electric guitars and explosions all struck in time with the stage lights flaring to life, brightly illuminating not just Hannah Montana but also the four members of the heavy metal band Metallica: James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett on guitars, Rob Trujillo (and his braids) on bass, and Lars Ulrich on drums. As the lights sprung to life, Miley's trenchcoat essentially disappeared as it was yanked offstage by a thin wire attached to it. Miley had simply draped the coat around her, ensuring that when the wire was quickly retracted the coat would easily come off of her body, revealing the risqué outfit beneath: a black mesh cut-off shirt over a bright red lacy bra that showed off her once-again toned stomach, silver short shorts that could only barely be called outerwear, and the same unlaced black leather boots Lilly had noticed earlier.

Lilly jumped up, pumping her fists over her head and adding her own cheers to those of the massive crowd behind and on each side of her. "Wow," she said to herself, shaking her head at her wife's confidence. While nearly any female performer would shy away from the song "Fuel" after the backlash against Avril Lavigne's poor performance of it back in 2007, Miley had decided to sing that very song for tonight's challenge, backed by the same band who had written and recorded it. _I'd say, go big or go home. Way to understate things, honey,_ Lilly thought. She clucked her tongue inside her mouth as she took in every detail of Miley's lovely body, efficiently showcased by her wife's daringly revealing choice of clothing. Miley's stomach was firmer than ever thanks to their workouts before and during her pregnancy and the hard work Miley had put in with her personal trainer for the last several weeks. The combination of hard work, discipline and a bit of luck had left Miley with no stretch marks from her pregnancy, and Lilly was never happier of that little detail than she was right at this moment. Miley's legs were similarly stunning, a combination of shapeliness, flawless skin and strength made even more beautiful by their length, and Lilly was nearly drooling as she watched her wife stalk across the stage while she sang.

As far as female singers went, Miley's deep, rich voice was ideally suited to "Fuel," and she had dropped her voice into a slightly lower register than usual to further capture the feel of the song. She was able to sing the longer notes with more melody and range than James Hetfield possessed, adding astonishing vocal prowess to the existing metal energy of the song. Lilly had no idea how Hannah had been able to get Metallica to agree to this mind-boggling musical team-up, but the pairing of superstar singer and metal legends was proving to be transcendent.

Miley winked at Lilly as she blazed through the first part of the song, not hesitating to use the word "fuck" when the song called for it. It was a subtle gesture that only a few people would catch in the heat of the performance, but catch it Lilly certainly did. As Miley reached the first chorus and sang the line _"Ooooh, and I burn,"_ the stage on each side of her erupted with fire shooting from pyrotechnic nozzles set up in the stage. The twin walls of fire surged to life each time Miley sang the word "burn," creating a startling display as well as a wave of heat each time the flames licked into the air. Miley had carefully rehearsed her performance for the last two weeks not only to ensure the best possible performance but also for her own safety; the flames would do very real, possibly lethal, damage if she were to be too close to them when they sprung to life.

Lilly found her wife's proximity to the pyrotechnics to be frightening but oddly exciting, albeit in a dangerous way. Her fears were tempered by the fact that she knew Miley wouldn't be messing with pyrotechnics in her shows without making sure every tiny detail was accounted for, and that allowed her to concentrate on the thrill she got from watching Hannah Montana steal tonight's show with a captivating performance no one could have seen coming.

As Miley finished the second chorus and the song entered the long bridge to the guitar solo, Miley tossed her microphone to a stage tech off to the side as she strode down the walkway toward Lilly's seat, sensuality dripping off her as she stalked her way toward her wife.

From the smoldering fire in Miley's eyes, Lilly could tell that her wife had given herself totally over to Hannah, so she allowed herself to fully become Lola without any hesitation or restraint. Instantly any lingering thoughts of self-consciousness disappeared, replaced with the daring and boldness that Lola personified. She raised her right hand and beckoned for Hannah to come closer, running her tongue across her lips as the sexy singer approached.

As Miley reached the shrouded object, the shroud suddenly fell away, revealing a gleaming silver pole that was nearly twice Miley's height. She gave a seductive smile to Lilly as she kicked off her unlaced boots, revealing her bare feet and flexing her shapely calves.

_Oh, honey, I want you sooo bad right now,_ thought Lilly before her mind went into a haze of desire. She shifted her legs slightly where they were crossed, feeling her wetness squelch between her thighs at the slight movement. When Miley grabbed the pole with her left hand and swung around, dipping her head to look Lilly right in the eyes, Lilly thought she was going to have an orgasm right then and there. As Miley held onto the pole and swung around once more, Lilly couldn't take her eyes off her wife's body, on display for her audience like never before. Miley stopped and gripped the pole with both hands, then she pushed off with a leap, tucking her legs beneath her as she spun once, twice around the pole, sliding down slowly until she landed lightly on her knees.

Metallica continued to play as Miley did her exotic and erotic dance for Lilly, extending the guitar solo to let not only Kirk Hammett but also Hetfield perform a solo. Miley sprang back to her feet, turning her back on Lilly long enough to grab onto the shiny pole once again. She turned to face Lilly, continuing to hold the pole high above her head, then she swung her legs up in front of her until she could wrap them around the top portion of the pole's length. Once she had firmly gripped the pole with her legs, she released it with her hands and arched her back until she was able to look Lilly in the face, her torso parallel to the stage floor. She smiled at Lilly, then she lowered her arms and hands toward the stage, loosening her legs' grips slightly until she slowly slid down, catching herself with her outstretched hands and arms. She continued to hold Lilly's gaze as she released the pole, using her arms and legs to crawl forward to her wife who was sitting utterly still in her special seat, her face rapt with desire and awe.

As Miley's face and those large, gorgeous lips drew closer and closer, Lilly felt her heart stop for a few seconds. She was already having difficulty breathing from the racy show Miley was putting on for her, and suddenly she wished for the concert, for the entire fucking _show,_ to be over _NOW,_ so she could tackle Miley and make love to her right on the stage, the audiences in attendance and at home be damned. And then their lips touched.

Lilly felt warmth spill across her body, first a trickle, then a cascade as her tongue and Miley's met. She shivered as the orgasm erupted deep inside her body, spreading out to her head and limbs just seconds later and carrying an ecstasy pure and profound with every tingle, every impulse. She moaned into Miley's mouth as she remained perfectly still other than the subtle quivering of her entire body. Miley hadn't touched her wife other than their kiss; heck, Lilly hadn't even touched _herself_, but the kiss coupled with Miley's sexually charged display was more than enough to push the incredibly aroused young woman over the edge.

As Miley felt the pleasure pulsing throughout Lilly's body echo in her own heart, she smiled as Lilly moaned into their kiss. She ended the kiss by licking Lilly's top lip, pulling away while Lilly was still unable to fully open her fluttering eyes. She stood and turned, walking back down the elevated walkway to the main stage. The stage tech handed her the microphone back as the band resumed the regular part of the song, with Miley picking up with the line, _"Give me fuel..."_ She stopped and turned back to the crowd as she sang, _"Give me fire..."_ She raised her free hand as she sang, _"My desire..."_ She motioned for the crowd to start clapping, smiling and nodding her head as the audience did just that. She carefully tossed Hannah's long blonde hair over her shoulder, then she belted out the last few lines of the song, holding the final notes for long, long seconds with her golden voice. As the music stopped and she finally let the last note end, the crowd thundered its approval with applause, cheers, shouts and whistles.

Miley turned and high-fived Hetfield, grinning as she congratulated each member of the band. She flashed Lilly a smile that made Lilly's heart skip another few beats, and Lilly suddenly realized that it was no big deal that Mikayla had done a second song. Miley might even have expected the arrogant singer to pull something like that, because it was now apparent to Lilly that Hannah herself had another song prepared for tonight, given the way that she and the band were lingering on the stage amidst the massive applause and loud cheers of the crowd. Mikayla trying to do that second song just played right into Miley's hands, Lilly thought with a mixture of both pride and satisfaction, because it made Hannah's choice of band even more impressive.

As the electric guitars began to growl again, Lilly's ears took just a few seconds before recognizing the music as the beginning of Hannah's older song "Supergirl." It definitely sounded different with guitars, bass and drums replacing the keyboards and synthesizer from the beginning of the original version of the song, but when Miley began to sing the words Lilly knew by heart, the song really came to life. The dichotomy of the same voice and lyrics with entirely different music was thrilling, and Lilly found herself experiencing this familiar song in an entirely new light. Miley sang aggressively, powerfully instead of the cool confidence that she normally channeled when singing "Supergirl," and Lilly had to admit that the change gave a new dimension to the song she already loved. Where Hannah normally drew the audience in with her songs, tonight she _commanded_ the audience to join her. And join her the thousands of fans in attendance did, nearly matching her in volume as the multitude of voices sang along word for word until the song was finished.

As Miley let the arm holding her microphone drop down, she raised her other arm high above her head, pumping her fist in the air as the feedback from the guitars and the last notes of the wah pedal faded. Hannah always smiled at the end of her concerts, but tonight Miley was cheering, practically screaming with joy at how good it felt to be back on stage again.

_She loves this so much_, thought Lilly as she stood, continuing to clap loudly. _And she's really, really missed it._ She was so fixated on how joyous Miley looked that she didn't notice the cheers and shouts from the crowd escalate as people beyond the first few rows recognized Lola's presence on the stage. _But as much as she loves singing and loves performing, she set all this aside without any hesitation so that we could focus on Brooke._ Lilly shook her head as she began to slowly walk toward her wife, her feet on autopilot as her mind continued to work. _I don't think I could ask her to give this up again, even if we decide we want more than two children. I'll just have to thumb-wrestle her for the third baby if we do wind up wanting more than two. _

As Miley waved to the crowd and thanked them for their enthusiasm, she noticed Lilly slowly making her way down the elevated walkway to the main stage. She quickly turned and thanked the members of Metallica again, shaking everyone's hand and promising to meet up with them later before turning and running—still barefoot—across the stage to meet Lilly right where the walkway met the large stage. Miley's adrenaline was racing through her body from her performance, and as she reached her wife, she leaped into Lilly's arms. Thankfully Lilly was more than strong enough to hold up her wife, and while Miley's exuberance had caught her off guard, she smoothly got her arms under Miley's thighs and held her wife firmly as Miley grabbed her head with both hands and kissed her fiercely, her tongue already out even before their lips met. Lilly stood there for several seconds, balancing Miley's weight as she had done many times before while the two of them continued to kiss deeply, oblivious to the thousands of people in the audience still screaming and cheering for them.

After coming to their senses, Miley and Lilly made their way backstage, where they saw the four members of Metallica talking to Jen, laughing as they shared what seemed to be a joke of some sort.

"How did you get Metallica to be your band for tonight?" Lilly asked, looking directly into Miley's eyes.

Miley smiled as she looked back into her best friend's eyes. "I sent Jen to ask them. I think they're scared of her."

"Miley," said Lilly with a slight frown. "Seriously."

"I called 'em up and told 'em what I wanted to do, then I asked 'em if they were crazy enough to do it," replied Miley with a knowing smile. "Turns out they were."

Lilly nodded. Still...

"_And _they were scared of Jen," added Miley.

Lilly nodded her head again. She could see that.

Minutes later Miley, Lilly and Mikayla were standing on the main stage, the announcer standing between them. _"Okay, people, it's time to choose tonight's winner in the Hannah Montana/Mikayla rock-off!" _yelled the announcer into the microphone. Predictably, the crowds roared their approval, eager to cast their votes for one of the young singers. The announcer smiled slickly as he said, _"First, those of you who think Mikayla rocked the house tonight, let me hear you scream!"_ Quite a few people whistled, shouted, cheered and made noise any way they could. It was a significantly louder response that Lilly had been expecting, but she didn't show any reaction whatsoever. Miley's votes still hadn't been counted yet.

"_And now, those of you who think that Hannah Montana laid down the rock and roll smack down tonight, let me hear you scream!"_

This time the roars of acclamation actually hurt Lilly's ears; she had removed her earplugs earlier, and now she found herself cringing from the sonic assault of Hannah's fans. Despite the discomfort, she still smiled broadly. Miley had answered Mikayla's blatantly stacked challenge and still won handily.

Sudden movement caught Lilly's attention, and she looked up to see Mikayla rush off stage. She looked at Miley, but Miley was already running after Mikayla. Lilly instantly took off after her wife, everything other than Miley forgotten at once.

"Mikayla!" Miley shouted as she ran across the large open area backstage. The slightly younger singer stopped and whirled around as Miley came to a stop near her.

"What?" said Mikayla smartly. "You want to rub it in that you won? Isn't it good enough that you humiliated me again?"

Miley blinked twice, not expecting so harsh a response. She opened her mouth to reply when she heard the clicking of heels approaching her. She closed her eyes briefly, opening them again when she felt Lilly's fingers brush across her back. She fixed Mikayla with a steely look, but she tried hard to not let any anger show through. "That's not what I wanted to say to you," she said calmly.

"Well, what the fuck _did_ you want to say to me?" spat Mikayla.

Miley crossed her arms over her chest, and if she had been wearing shoes she would have been tapping the toes of her right foot against the floor. "I _wanted_ to say that you did a good job tonight," she said, keeping her voice neutral. "You sang two songs that are really different from what you're used to, and you gave it all you had. Plus your dancin' and choreography was dang near out of this world. I mean, you've got nothin' to feel bad about tonight."

"Except losing, right?" said Mikayla, the hurt bleeding through her voice. She fought furiously not to cry, but she wasn't sure how much longer she could hold the tears back. She needed to get away from here quickly.

"Mikayla," said Lilly, stepping forward slowly and drawing surprised looks from not just Mikayla but also Miley as well. "One of the hardest lessons I ever had to learn about life was that sometimes you can play a perfect game and still lose," she said. "And when that happens, you can still hold your head up and know that you gave it everything you had. There's no shame in that."

Mikayla turned and hurried away without another word, passing Margot without stopping as the older woman turned and began walking quickly after her client. As Miley and Lilly watched, Jen walked over to them.

"You did good out there tonight, Hannah," said Jen proudly. "See? You didn't have a damn thing to worry about."

Lilly bumped Miley's hip with her own. "Told you, hon. I knew you'd do great, even if you wouldn't tell me who your band was until tonight." At the contact between her and Miley, Lilly felt a jolt of electricity surge throughout her body, setting her nerves on fire. She needed Miley, and she needed her _now._ "I think we need to head to the motel, Hannah," Lilly said. "Like, now."

Jen stepped to the side, but she gently took Lilly's arm as she did so. "I'm not holding you two up from what I'm sure is gonna be really sweet sex, but I do need to ask Lola something real quick if that's okay."

"Sure," said Miley with a nod, her own insides on fire now. "I'll, uh, go have the limo brought around. Roxy has Megan, and she's gonna bring her to the hotel so we can get her when we're done."

"Tell her to plan on it being a while," said Lilly with a confident smile on her face. "A _long_ while." Lilly continued to stare at Miley's butt on display in the silver hot pants as the singer walked away briskly.

Jen turned to Lilly, a knowing look on her face. "She turned you on pretty damn good, huh?" she asked smugly.

Lilly nodded her head slowly, not taking her eyes off her wife's rear until she turned a corner far down the hall. "You have no idea, Jen," said Lilly deliberately.

"Oh, I have a pretty good idea. Hell, she turned me on out there, and I wasn't the one she was shaking her ass for." She smiled as she said, "You get a good view from your seat out there?"

Lilly beamed, her smile wide enough to show most of her teeth. "Best. View. Ever," she said dreamily. Right before she let herself get lost in pleasant thoughts of Miley's smile, of Miley's smell, of Miley's taste, of the way Miley gasped when she—

Lilly shook her head madly in an attempt to get her mind back on track for business. Jen had wanted to ask her something. "What was it you needed to ask me, Jen?" she managed to say despite her oddly dry throat.

Jen's smile faded, replaced by a serious expression that fell across her face. "A while back you asked me to do something," Jen said softly, paused while she waited for Lilly to realize exactly what she was talking about. "I had just gotten into Hawai'i, and you called me and gave me a... special assignment, let's say."

"Oh," said Lilly as recognition dawned in her mind. "_That_ assignment," she said, her own voice lower now.

"Yeah," said Jen with a nod. "And do you remember what you told me about how far I could go to accomplish that assignment?"

Lilly nodded again. "I said, 'whatever it takes'," she said slowly, keeping eye contact with her friend and business manager.

"Yeah. So what I was wanting to clarify with you tonight was this," said Jen, trailing off and pausing for a few seconds as she looked into Lilly's inquiring blue eyes. "Did you really mean that?" she asked. "_Anything_ it takes, no matter how much it costs?"

Lilly only had to consider the possibilities of what "anything" could mean for less than a second. "Yes," she said firmly but quietly. "You _do_ anything, _spend_ anything. Just find me something to protect her from either of those bitches. They'll stop at nothing to ruin her career, and I'll die before I let that happen."

Jen had known Lilly long enough to know that her friend was serious. Deathly serious. "Okay," she nodded. "Just wanted to make sure before I followed through on something." Jen smiled again, that same smile Lilly remembered from high school, the one that made girls and boys twice her size move out of her way in the halls when she approached..

"I'm glad you're on our side, Jen," said Lilly, meaning every word. "I know we can trust you."

Jen wasn't much for sentiment or being very touchy-feely, so it took her three attempts before she was able to hug Lilly. Lilly managed not to laugh at the awkward starts and stops, and when Jen succeeded in hugging her lightly, Lilly hugged her back with the same gentle pressure. "Anything else I need to know tonight?" Lilly asked as they pulled apart, Jen a bit quicker to let go than Lilly was.

"Yeah," said Jen with a smile significantly more friendly. "Your really fucking hot rock star wife is in the limo, just waiting for you to take her back to your hotel and fuck her brains out all night. Roxy's watching your kid tonight, and I'm taking over baby duty in the morning until you two are up." She looked at Lilly briefly before she spit out, "So why the hell are you still standing here? Go!"

Without another word, Lilly turned and sprinted down the hall, three-inch heels not slowing her down in the least as she raced toward her wife. "Thanks Jen!" she called out, her words echoing down the concrete hallway. "You tell her about _American Gladiators_ yet?" she yelled over her shoulder, not looking back.

Jen cupped her right hand around her mouth as she yelled back, "No! You tell her in the morning, after you fuck her like you own her! She might not be as mad at us for signing her up then!"

"Wimp!" cried Lilly, her voice fading as she neared the end of the hallway. "But we love you!" she added as she turned the corner and ran out of sight. It was going to be a good night. A really, _really_ good night.

**Author's Afterword:** Please, please forgive me for taking so long to get this chapter up. I've had almost zero time to write these last four weeks, and I really needed just a short break to deal with tons of stuff that's come up in my life. However, I'm happy to say that all of it has been good. Really good. I'll expound more in the next few chapters, I promise. Until then, please know that I'm back writing regularly again now that I'm refocused, and I hope you enjoyed this chapter! See you soon (I promise!)

Jo


	24. Chapter 24: The Thin Ice of My Life

**Author's Note:** Welcome back! I tried to watch some of a more recent episode of HM a little over a week ago, and I finally had to get up and leave. Seeing the once-strong character of Lilly reduced to a pathetic figure who moons around over Oliver no matter how badly he treats her... Well, let's just say it makes me very upset. And angry. _Really_ angry. If Disney is trying to outwardly quash any vibes between Miley and Emily's characters on the show, they're doing one hell of a job. Of course, they're also running off several long-time viewers who actually care about the bond between Lilly and Miley. Thanks, Disney. Let me see if I have any more hopes you can crush while you're at it. At least here we're not afraid to embrace the love between Miley and Lilly, so let's get back to our favorite girls!

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist or publication mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo K.

Chapter 24: The Thin Ice of My Life

_Night after night, day after day, it went on and on_

_Then came that morning she woke up alone_

_She spent all night staring down at the lights of L.A._

_Wondering if she could ever go home_

-Mikayla, covering Bob Seger's "Hollywood Nights"

"_Nice job, Mikayla! Why don't you take a break?"_

Mikayla nodded to the engineer in the control room as she slipped off her headphones and left them on the seat in the recording booth. Last night's concert duel with Hannah had been painful in several ways, ranging from simply humiliating to soul-crushing. She didn't register the audio engineer's words to her as she passed the control room, but dimly she thought that they were probably meant to be encouraging. _Why would anyone want to encourage me? Maybe he's wanting me to sound good because it'll be his name attached to the finished product somewhere. No damn way he just wants to cheer me up. People aren't like that in the real world._

As she stepped out into the hall, she stopped short when she nearly ran into someone heading into the studio as she was heading out. "Oh! Ms. Blaike!" Mikayla said hurriedly, wincing when she saw several drops of her boss's coffee fall to the floor. "I, uh, didn't expect to run into you at..."

"Five in the morning?" Vera Blaike finished for the young singer, fighting off a smile that threatened to spill across her face. "Well, to tell you the truth, I didn't expect to get a call from here telling me that our star artist had called in a recording team in the middle of the night."

Mikayla felt slightly chastised at the older woman's words. "Well, I heard this song on the radio, and it got me thinking—"

"Mikayla," Vera said quickly, making a point to smile enough to communicate that she wasn't angry at all. In fact, she was thrilled that the young woman who had built such a reputation as a troublemaker was finally beginning to show some dedication to her music. "You don't have to apologize for getting an idea for a song and wanting to record it while the inspiration is still fresh. That's what musicians and singers _do_, young lady. Now, if that phone call had been to tell me that you'd slapped another reporter, then I'd have been royally pissed."

"It was just the one time," Mikayla said quietly, trying hard not to smile at the memory. The bitch had deserved it as far as she was concerned, but now probably wasn't the best time to belabor the point. "And I did apologize." After a pause, "Sort of."

Vera continued to smile at Mikayla, a wistful look firmly in place as she regarded the dark-haired young woman in front of her, so different than the confident but already angry teenager Mikayla had been when Vera had first heard her sing all those years ago.

"Okay, am I getting the silent treatment? Because you're starting to creep me out," Mikayla finally said, startling Vera out of her reverie.

"Come walk with me," said Vera, turning and starting down the empty hallway without bothering to see if Mikayla really was going to follow her.

"I've been following your career for a long time, Mikayla," said Vera softly as they reached her office a minute later. The polished brass plate on the door simply declared _Vera Blaike_, with no mention of any position or title beyond her name itself.

That little detail troubled Mikayla, who liked to know where she stood when dealing with others. Working from a position of strength was always preferable to a position of weakness, with an uncertain position the worst possible situation in negotiations—and everything in the music industry was negotiations, to some degree.

"Have a seat," Vera said casually, as if it were entirely normal for a major label record company executive and its headlining artist to have a informal sitdown before six on a Saturday morning.

After only a moment's hesitation Mikayla slid into one of the oversized leather chairs in front of the large ash desk. She was caught off guard when Vera sat in the seat next to her rather than behind the large and somewhat imposing desk. She couldn't help but smile at the older woman's unpredictability, a quality that Mikayla was beginning to appreciate. "You know, Margot told me never to talk to you without her present," Mikayla said without preamble, watching Vera's face for any overt reaction.

The only obvious response was a hint of a smile on Vera's lips. "Should we call her and wait for her to get here?" she asked, humor in her voice.

"Nah, fuck her," said Mikayla with a dismissive wave of her hand. "I'm beginning to think she hasn't exactly given me the best career advice, if you know what I mean."

"What exactly _do_ you mean, Mikayla?" asked Vera after several seconds, and now the smile was gone, replaced by an expression entirely devoid of emotion, hazel eyes peering intently into Mikayla's dark brown. "I'd like to know more about that artist-manager relationship the two of you have, because for the life of me I can't figure out why the hell you still put up with that condescending bitch."

_Well._ Mikayla's eyebrows rose nearly to her hairline at Vera's blunt words. She considered her options briefly before replying. Vera had stood behind the fiery singer on more than one occasion, frequently in opposition to Margot and Margot's brother Lonnie, and every one of those times Vera had gotten her way, nearly always to Mikayla's advantage. And there was also the simple fact that if Vera possessed that sort of clout at the new Dyseni Records, it could certainly be turned against Mikayla were the singer to alienate Vera Blaike; the results of that turn of events would most certainly end poorly for Mikayla and her recovering career. _Well, I really don't have a choice. Fuck._ Mikayla sighed, then she said, "Okay. I'll tell you. But first I want to know something."

Vera shrugged slightly. "Ask away," she said pleasantly, as if she were the one sitting in Mikayla's executive office rather than the other way around.

"Why the hell have you been looking out for me since Dyseni signed me? I mean, not just this most recent concert thing, but the whole time I've been here. In fact, I heard a rumor that you were the one who wanted Dyseni to offer me a contract this time around." That particular piece of information had cost Mikayla a blowjob on one of the executive assistants, but he had turned out to be pretty fun in bed, so she didn't really consider it a chore once it was done.

Vera continued to look intensely at Mikayla for nearly a minute, not moving or saying a word. Finally her lips parted, and she carefully said, "You were best friends with my niece Kasey Gomez. Before she died."

As things suddenly clicked into place in her mind, Mikayla felt her head spin slightly. "You were—"

"The aunt no one in the family would talk about, because I was gay," finished Vera softly. "Except Kasey. She called me about once, twice a week, and she kept me filled in on what was going on in the family." Now her eyes glistened as she spoke slowly, gently, and the sadness that Mikayla could detect in Vera's voice was a sadness that she knew far, far too well.

_Oh God, all those things I said about Hannah Montana and her wife being lesbians, all those things I _did _to them..._ Mikayla felt her stomach toss abruptly, and she momentarily considered whether she was going to throw up in her boss's office. "I... I didn't know," she finally said, swallowing against the bile rising into her throat. "That you were her aunt. That you were _gay!_ I swear it, I _didn't know!_" she said, her words rising in volume until the last words reached a plaintive wail. All her efforts to succeed, all her willingness to do whatever it took to make it to the top, to make it big for her and Kasey both—what was it worth if she had become someone Kasey would be ashamed of today?

Mikayla abruptly laughed, an angry, bitter tone that rang out even as her stomach churned and hot tears streamed down her face. "God, I've fucked everything up," she said, an eerie calm suffusing her words as she spoke softly. She turned to look at Vera; the only visible sign of emotion on the older woman's face was the reddening of her eyes, hinting at what emotions must be swirling behind her still countenance. "Kasey and I both wanted to be stars since the time we were little kids. It was gonna be my way out, my ticket out of that piece of shit town in Texas, and she felt the same. We had agreed that whichever one of us made it first would take the other with her until her career took off too. I had just started to break out with 'If Cupid Had a Heart' when—"

Vera saw the young woman sitting across from her go silent and drop her head, staring down at the floor as tears dripped from her face onto the steel gray carpet. The proud, strong-willed performer Vera was familiar with had been replaced by an altogether different Mikayla, one weary and battered by the tragedies that haunted her young life. She slowly reached out, hesitantly touching the brunette's hair with her fingers in a gesture of compassion when Mikayla slid out of her chair, crumpling onto the floor as she cried, her entire body convulsing with sobs deep and angry.

_How do I fix a life that's this broken?_ thought Vera as she slid down into the floor beside Mikayla, carefully resting her hand on the back of the young woman whom her niece had loved with all her heart, probably more than Mikayla had ever realized. Kasey's feelings for her best friend had been one of the secrets that the young woman had shared with her Aunt Vera and no one else, not even her best friend—_especially_ not her best friend. She had known all too well how Mikayla would react, so she had kept those feelings securely bottled up inside her.

_I have to try, because no one else will,_ Vera realized, taking a deep breath before she said anything. _For this girl in front of me who's never known a stable life, and for you, Kasey, because I know you'd rather die all over again than see her like this. I have to try._

Vera closed her eyes and took several deep breaths, hoping against hope that she could bring some peace to Mikayla's life. And then, maybe one day, she'd find the courage to tell Mikayla just how much her best friend Kasey had truly, secretly loved her. "Mikayla?" Vera asked as the wracking sobs began to ease. "Mikayla? It's Vera, Kasey's aunt."

At the mention of her best friend's name, Mikayla lifted her head, revealing dark eyes heavy with guilt and shame. "Why did you let me do what I did, say the things I said, when you were..." she asked, unable to speak the last word.

"When I was gay myself?" asked Vera knowingly, keeping her expression neutral. "Because I wanted you to find your own way, Mikayla, to become your own person. But that's never going to happen as long as you let that domineering bitch Margot Walters control your life."

Mikayla looked away quickly. "You don't understand," she said, shaking her head. "You don't know everything that's gone on. Everything that she's fixed for me, all the trouble that she's kept me out of."

"Maybe not," replied Vera steadily, "but what I do know is that my company's premier artist is having a breakdown on the floor of my office, and right now I'm not just concerned with her ability to produce and perform, I'm also worried about her health—and her life." After a long pause, Vera carefully said, "I know that you've passed every drug and alcohol test we've given you, Mikayla. I've kept a close eye on all the results, just in case you started using or drinking again. And you've kept all your therapy sessions regularly, even if you haven't been the most pleasant patient."

"I haven't exactly had the most pleasant therapist, either," Mikayla said with a hint of a grin that quickly faded, leaving the dour face from before. "But I guess it's not her job to make me like her," she admitted grudgingly.

Vera was afraid she already knew what the answer to her next question was going to be, but she needed to ask it. "Mikayla, do you have any... friends? Outside of the music industry, I mean? Someone you could talk to who could give you maybe a different perspective on things?"

Mikayla frowned. _Me? Friends? Please. Who the hell would— Wait, wait, wait._ She looked up into Vera's searching eyes as she felt hope begin to flutter to life inside her heart. "I might have a friend I could talk to," she said as a faint smile began to inch across her face. "Two of them, in fact."

Several miles away, the sun was rising over Malibu, casting the first glowing tendrils of light into the master bedroom of Miley and Lilly Truscott. They had gotten in bed just a few hours ago, following a very late night flight back to California after the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Concert.

Miley smiled as she happily snuggled closer to the two most important things in her life: her wife Lilly and their daughter Brooke, who was sleeping between her two mommies. Miley pulled the covers up slightly, not even opening her eyes as she lifted her left arm and shook it silently. As the numbness began to recede, she returned it to its place lying over Lilly's hips, pulling her wife's pelvis snug against her own once more as they formed a shape reminiscent of a heart, with Brooke in the open area between them. They both had pajamas on, but Miley could still feel the heat radiating off her best friend's body where only thin fabric separated their skin.

As Miley watched, Lilly smiled in her sleep at the resumption of contact between the two of them. _My poor Lilly Bear. You didn't get much sleep last night. Well, neither of us got much sleep. _

In fact, Miley had been rather prophetic in predicting Lilly's actions after the concert. It had taken less that ten seconds after the door to the limousine had closed before Lilly had her hand down Miley's skin-tight silver shorts. The limousine had barely left the concert site when Miley had her first orgasm of the night, one hand up Lilly's shirt, the other clenching the door handle so hard that her fingers went numb. The rest of the limousine ride went much the same way, as did the next several hours in their hotel room. It wasn't until nearly two in the morning that Lilly rolled off of Miley and looked at her best friend and wife with the quirky smile that Miley couldn't resist. "I want to sleep in our bed tonight, honey," Lilly had said. "Just you, me, and our baby." And Miley hadn't hesitated a second before agreeing.

For Hannah Montana, getting a private jet chartered in the middle of the night was only a minor chore. Less than ninety minutes later, Miley, Lilly, Brooke, Roxy and Jen were all on their way back to California; with the time zone change, they were all settled in their own beds long before the sunrise.

And so Miley found herself smiling as she laid her own head back down on her pillow, blowing a kiss over their daughter to her wife just inches away from her before drifting back into the pleasure of a deep sleep.

Shortly thereafter, the ringing of the doorbell roused Lilly from her own dreams. "Miles, get the door," she mumbled sleepily, adding, "Please," after a few seconds. When there was no response from her wife, Lilly lifted her head and took in the sight of Miley holding Brooke close to her chest, where the youngest Truscott was nursing in her sleep. "Aw, you two are so cute," Lilly said quietly, lightly smoothing a lock of Brooke's blonde hair back down onto her head. "I'll get the door," she said mostly to herself as she slid out of bed, shedding the sweaty pajamas for a thin white camisole and powder blue pair of panties, grabbing a silk robe from the closet as she hurried out of the bedroom.

Lilly tied the sash around her waist as she hurried down the stairs. "Coming!" she yelled as her toes touched the ground floor, hustling to the door before whoever it was could ring the doorbell again. She opened the lock and turned the latch before her sleepy mind could process exactly which friends she and Miley were expecting today, but as soon as she saw the faces of their friends from back in Tennessee Lilly couldn't help but be excited. "Dee! Amy! Holy cow! What time did you two leave Tennessee?"

"Before the sun came up," said Amy, yawning. "But we slept on the plane, at least."

Lilly waved her friends inside. "Come in, come in! Don't want to give the neighbors anything else to gossip about," she said as she grabbed the two suitcases on the porch, carrying them inside before she turned and closed the door behind Amy and Dee. As she did so, the knot holding her robe closed slipped, letting the sides of the lavender robe drift open.

"Damn, Lilly!" said Amy, her dark brown hair now slightly longer and shot through with streaks of soft red, adding a soft whistle as Lilly turned around to see the two of them looking her up and down rather obviously, if playfully. "You work out all the time or what? I mean, Dee skates all the time, but her legs don't look like _that!_"

"Hey, thanks!" said the shorter girl with dark blue hair cropped just below her ears. "You weren't complainin' about my legs last night, girl!"

"Aw, Dee honey, I'd never complain about your legs," Amy said as she wrapped her arms around her girlfriend's shoulders and kissed her on the cheek. "Especially not after how you made me feel last night!"

Dee grinned and winked at Lilly, who was regarding her friends with a patient, even understanding look. "Your legs do look hot as hell, Lilly," Dee said, giving a slight nod to Lilly, who returned it immediately. "I bet Miley still can't keep her hands off you, can she?"

"Why on earth would I want to?" came a voice from the top of the stairs. Dee and Amy turned to see Miley carefully coming down the stairs, her long brown hair rather disheveled and wild. She had put on a light gray tank top and a pink pair of pajama shorts, but the brown and pink blanket in her arms and the baby girl inside it had already seized the attention of their visitors from Tennessee.

"Oh shit!" said Amy, who quickly added, "Sorry! About the swearin', I mean."

Dee lightly pushed her girlfriend's shoulder. "You are _not _sorry, either!" She looked at Lilly and said, "She cusses all the time!"

"Well, you two can watch your mouths while you're around Brooke," said Miley as she reached the ground floor, walking past Amy and Dee to first meet her wife with a kiss. "Mmm, good morning, beautiful," Miley said as Lilly put her arms around her wife and their baby. "Missed you when I got up."

"I had to get the door, or else it might've woken up the beast, here," Lilly said, giving Miley another kiss before gently kissing Brooke's soft forehead.

Amy and Dee both gasped as they peered closely at the baby nestled snugly in Miley's arms. "Is she still asleep?" asked Dee, putting her hands behind her back as if she were afraid to accidentally touch her.

Miley nodded. "You can hold her if you want," she said. "Let's go sit on the couch."

As Lilly watched Miley show their friends how to hold Brooke while still supporting her neck, she found herself newly curious as to what prompted the sudden trip out to California for Amy and Dee. That curiosity, however, was pushed aside by the thoughts of taking Dee down to the large skate park less than half a mile away. She loved having Miley cheering her on, but having someone else to skate with was fun in an entirely different way. Oliver had never been that good skating, and truthfully she had grown apart from her old skating buddies of a few years ago. Having another friend to skate with was already rekindling the love of skating that still flickered deep inside her heart.

"Hey, can we see the ocean?" said Amy suddenly, standing up fast enough to startle Dee; however, the blue-haired girl kept a sure grip on baby Brooke, giving her girlfriend a stern look as she did so.

"Yeah, as long as you don't knock my daughter off the couch!" said Miley with a light shove against Amy's leg.  
"Here five minutes and you're already actin' like you own the place, I tell ya."

"I'll hold her, Miles," Lilly said, reaching over to take Brooke away from Dee, who seemed relieved to pass the infant over. "It's okay, Dee," teased Lilly with a smile before she looked back to Miley. "You can take Dee and Amy down to see the ocean."

"Hell yeah!" Dee said. She flinched as Amy popped her on the arm with a crisp smack.

"Now who's got the dirty mouth?" teased Amy, already rubbing Dee's arm before she planted a kiss on it. "That feel better now?"

"Yeah, some," muttered Dee, holding a serious face for several seconds before finally letting her smile creep through.

Miley stopped at the back door, Amy and Dee hot on her heels. "You don't mind if we run down there real quick, baby?"

"Nope," Lilly said, waving for her wife to go on. "I'll get this little doodlebug changed and cleaned up while you three are gone."

"Okay, see you in a sec, Lil," Miley said breezily as she swept out the door, Amy following as Dee closed the door behind her.

Lilly lifted Brooke up, facing the now-awake baby. "So are you gonna be Mommy's little spy and help her find out why our friends flew out here so suddenly?" Brooke's reply was more of a smile and soft grunt than any proper statement, but Lilly grinned and said, "Oooh, you're definitely your Momma's little girl, yes you are! Yes you are!" Brooke continued to smile, even making a short squeal of delight at the faces her mother was making for her. The ringing of the doorbell broke that focus, however, and Brooke blinked twice, her eyes noticeably wider.

"Oooh, that mean old doorbell!" said Lilly playfully, still smiling. She kissed Brooke on the cheeks, left first, then the right, then she turned and walked to the door. "So who on earth could that be so early?" she said to Brooke, who was once again smiling at her mommy's voice. Lilly opened the door and froze when she saw who was standing at the door.

"Hi, Lilly," said Mikayla, her stance not as confident as it had been the last time she had dropped by unexpectedly.

Lilly's eyes narrowed slightly. "You really need to work on this whole calling ahead thing," she said coolly. "That'd make it much easier to be gone when you came by."

Surprisingly, Mikayla didn't sneer or offer any verbal riposte to Lilly's comment. Instead she looked squarely at Lilly, and that allowed Lilly to see the redness rimming the singer's eyes. "I need to talk to you," said Mikayla softly. She looked over her shoulder, checking both her left and then her right. "Can I, uh, come in? I don't think anyone followed me, but I'd prefer not to bring stalker paparazzi to your house. You and Miley wouldn't know what to do with them."

_If only you knew_, thought Lilly, keeping her face neutral, if a bit frosty. "Sure, come on in," she finally said, stepping aside to let Hannah's nemesis through. She felt a bit dirty, letting someone so openly hostile to Hannah and Lola come into their house and plop down onto their couch, but obviously something was bothering Mikayla, and that could be worth investigating.

Mikayla looked around nervously, her legs drawn together at the knees as she nervously bounced her left leg up and down on the floor. "Is Miley here?" she asked.

"She's down at the beach," Lilly replied automatically, and her words triggered a thought. "Hang on," she said to Mikayla as she grabbed her cell phone. One tap of her speed dial had Miley's phone ringing.

"_Hey hon,"_ said Miley's voice.

"Hey," answered Lilly, and even that simple exchange of words made her smile slightly. _ I just love hearing her voice_. "You mind maybe taking Amy and Dee down to Rico's and getting them something for breakfast?"

"_Um, yeah, I could do that. You want something from there?"_

"Not exactly. Mikayla's here."

After a pause, _"You need me to come back there right now?"_

"No, she said she wants to talk about something, so I think it'd be best if we didn't have our friends walk in and see her in our house. That might be a little distracting."

Mikayla preened on the couch as she heard Lilly's words, obviously assuming that her celebrity status would certainly overwhelm whomever it was Lilly was talking about.

"_Yeah, all that barfing would sorta make it hard to talk."_

Lilly snickered as Mikayla continued to bask in the attention she thought she was getting. It did seem to cheer the younger woman up somewhat, but Lilly wasn't sure if she considered that a good thing or a bad thing. "Right," she replied. "Give me a heads up when you three start back, okay?"

"_You got it, hon. If you need me, just call, okay? I'll be back there faster'n two shakes of a lamb's tail."_

"You realize that's kinda slow, right? That it takes a lamb longer to shake its tail than people realize?"

" _... You wantin' something for breakfast or not, Truscott?"_

Now Lilly laughed, and in her heart she could feel Miley's happiness and joy in their loving banter. "Yeah, I want something for breakfast. Surprise me."

"_You got it, beautiful."_

"Oh, and Miley?"

"_Yeah?"_

"I love you."

"_Love you too, baby."_

Lilly smiled as she ended the call, replacing the phone on the end table beside her chair. As her eyes shifted to regard her surprise visitor, she found herself curious more than angry, at least for the moment. Something had obviously rattled Mikayla since the concert—_well, other than Hannah wiping the stage with her_, Lilly mused—and that was very unexpected. "So what did you want to talk about, Mikayla?" Lilly said, striving to keep her voice calm and not let her dislike of Hannah's rival seep through into her tone.

"I need some advice," replied Mikayla, her eyes guarded but with a hint of hope in them.

Lilly frowned now. "Why would you ask me, then? I think you know exactly how I feel about you."

Mikayla nodded. "Yeah, I know. You hate me, because you're friends with Hannah and Lola and I've gone after them tooth and nail."

"Sounds about right," said Lilly, settling Brooke down in her lap.

"That's exactly why I needed to ask _you_ this, Lilly. _Because_ you don't like me. You're not somebody who's going to tell me what I want to hear just because I'm a celebrity. You're not going to try and be polite or give me a roundabout answer, like Miley would. You're going to tell me the cold, hard truth whether it hurts me or not." She looked out the back doors for a few seconds. "Miley..." She turned back to Lilly, and now there was an unreadable smile on the brunette's face. "I think my relationship with Miley is still complicated. Well, maybe confusing. You know, we were both interested in the same boy at the same time, and I'm not sure if there's still some jealousy there or not."

"There's not," Lilly said firmly, nearly wincing. _Trust Mikayla to dredge up memories of the most painful times of mine and Miley's lives. It may be over, but I still hate even thinking about that time she went out with him._ "In fact," Lilly added, "dating Jake was one of the worst mistakes Miley ever made. We both suffered because of it, in more ways than one. You can have him."

"I'd as soon rip his head off as look at him," said Mikayla quickly, and there was no disguising the venom in her voice as she spoke. "I hate him. He ruined my life. He took something away from me that I can never get back, not ever." She looked directly in Lilly's eyes and said, "And no, I'm not interested in talking about that."

Lilly sighed. _I think I liked her better before that attitude came back._ "So what are you here to ask me, Mikayla? You might as well get it over with before Miley and our friends get back here."

Mikayla pulled a lock of her hair forward, running her fingers through it as she played with it without thinking. "I've been pretty vicious with some of the things I've said in the press about Hannah and Lola," she said, looking around the room, her eyes landing on everything but Lilly. "And just today I found out that those things I was saying had hurt someone who's been nothing but good to me, someone whose opinion of me actually matters to me, believe it or not." Mikayla smiled fractionally at that last phrase, and Lilly found herself nearly matching that hint of a smile.

"I'm stopping the smear tactics on Hannah and Lola," Mikayla said slowly. "I expect that my manager will be pissed off beyond belief, but I think it's the right thing to do. At the same time, I can't exactly come out and say, 'Oh, hey, I was just saying all that anti-lesbian bullshit to get people pissed off and sell copies of my new album and songs. I don't mean it now, 'kay?' You see the problem there?"

"That it'd prove to everyone that you're a liar and a hypocrite?" asked Lilly calmly.

"Exactly!" said Mikayla excitedly, the rebuke in Lilly's question either missed or entirely ignored. "So. Do you think you could talk to your friends and see if they'd be willing to meet with me so we can settle this quietly?" Mikayla looked at Lilly for a moment, then she said with a voice near a whisper, "Actually, I'm going to see Hannah in a few weeks, when we compete on _American Gladiators_. They're bringing the show back or something like that, and somebody thought it'd be good publicity for the two of us to go against each other. You think she might be willing to talk to me then?"

Lilly restrained herself from revealing that not only did she already know about the upcoming reboot of _American Gladiators_, but she had campaigned long and hard for it to be Lola competing against Mikayla, not Hannah. However, the show's producers saw that the public was fixated on the rivalry between Mikayla and Hannah, and that was the match-up they insisted upon.

Lilly brought her thoughts back to the present. "Before I tell them anything, Mikayla, how do I know that this isn't just some sort of sick game you're playing? You know, maybe trying to make Hannah feel sorry for you before the competition or something?"

Just like that, the openness in Mikayla's eyes disappeared, snapped shut like the jaws of an angry monster. "Hey, I don't need Ms. Thing to feel _shit_ for me, alright?" she said hotly. "I'm stopping the attack on them being gay because some of what I've said hurt one of the few people I care about, like I just told you. If you don't believe me, that's your choice, but it's the truth."

The sapphire blue eyes watching the singer's dark brown ones didn't blink at the increased volume of her words. Instead Lilly replayed Mikayla's words in her mind for a few seconds before carefully asking, "There are actually people you care about?"

"Yeah, there are, hard as that may be for you to believe." Mikayla said smartly. She looked away, and when she returned her gaze to the blonde sitting several feet away, she couldn't help but smile softly as she saw the baby in Lilly's lap was smiling and laughing as her mother tickled her feet. "You're luckier than you know," she whispered in a soft voice not meant to be heard by anyone, but she misjudged how her voice would carry inside the large room.

"What?"

"I said, you're luckier than you know," Mikayla said, returning her face to a neutral expression. "The baby," she said, gesturing to the squirming bundle now latching onto Lilly's fingers. "She's adorable."

"Yeah, she sure is. Her face looks so much like Miley, don't you think?" asked Lilly, turning Brooke so that Mikayla could peer closely at the baby.

"Shit, she _does_ look like her, doesn't she?" muttered Mikayla after a few seconds. "All those cheeks. But where did she get her blonde hair from?"

"Me," said Lilly, wiggling a handful of her blonde hair at Mikayla. "We used the same clinic that Hannah and Lola did, to get pregnant with little Brooke here. I'm her mother just as much as Miley is."

Mikayla cast a wary glance at the blonde. "No shit?" she softly asked. "Like they did with their daughter?"

Lilly smiled and nodded. "She's both of us put together, a dream of ours come to life. For so long we wanted children, but we both refused to carry anyone's child but each other's. Now we've finally got our first baby girl." As the last sentence rolled out of Lilly's mouth, she found the word _first_ echoing through her consciousness, making her smile even more.

"How long were you two together before you were, you know, together?" asked Mikayla slowly.

"About five years," answered Lilly. _Four years, two months, and twenty-three days,_ she thought idly, having long ago memorized the time span between first meeting Miley and the first time they made love.

"And you were best friends?"

Lilly smiled as she briefly thought back to those days where life was so much simpler, boring even. But then a beautiful stranger with long, curly brown hair and her larger-than-life smile walked into Lilly's life, and the prologue of the first ten years of her life gave way to the real life that began only when Miley Stewart smiled at Lilly Truscott for the very first time. "Yeah, we were best friends from the first day I laid eyes on her," she said happily, her thoughts still lingering on those sweet moments from their childhood. She shifted her focus, bringing her vision out of the past and into the present. "What are you getting at, Mikayla? Because I'm not sure where you're going with this."

Mikayla opened her mouth to speak, but no words came forth. She stood abruptly and walked across the floor toward the kitchen, where she stood for long seconds, her back turned to Lilly. Finally she turned to face Lilly, slowly walking back to the seat she had been using, but she stood beside it now rather than sit down. "I had a best friend once, too," she said, eyes looking at Brooke but still avoiding Lilly's gaze. "Her name was Kasey, and we met when I was six. She was seven, and we hit it off immediately. My home life at the time was a total fuck-up, and hers wasn't much better. But we survived, mostly, and when I was twelve Kasey and her mom moved out here to Los Angeles. I hid in the trunk of their car the morning they were leaving, and I was ready to ride all the way from Texas to California back there if I had to. But we hadn't even made it out of the neighborhood before Kasey had her mom stop and check the trunk, just to see if I was there."

"So they took you back home?" asked Lilly, leaning forward slightly as she began to rock Brooke softly back and forth.

Mikayla smiled, her cocky smile that adorned album covers and found its way onto magazine covers back to full strength. "Fuck, no," she said. "Kase told me to get my ass up there with her, because that way I wouldn't have to piss on their clothes when I couldn't hold it anymore!"

Before she realized it was happening, Lilly found herself giggling, and that surprised her. _How much is there that __we really don't know about Mikayla? And how good a friend was this Kasey, truly, if she helped Mikayla run away from home?_ "So didn't your mom and dad freak out when they realized you were gone?" Lilly asked, curious.

Hurt flashed across Mikayla's pupils, so fleeting it was gone even before Lilly realized what she had seen, but it was so intense that there was no doubt it had been there. "My mom died when I was really little, and my dad... Well, let's just say that my piece of shit father was the main reason I was running away to begin with. He didn't even bother to report me missing, probably because he was scared of what I'd tell the cops when they found me. Kasey knew what I had been through, and she didn't judge me for what had happened to me. We were both running from things, the kind of things that'll always haunt you and jump up when you least expect them. But we had each other, so we had hope."

Lilly nodded, understanding that much, at least. That was what Miley had given her for so long and continued to give her: hope. Hope for love, hope for a family, hope for an understanding so deep and profound that it couldn't be put into words, hope for, well, pretty much everything. How agonizing would it be to lose that? To lose Miley and everything she meant to Lilly? "So were you two..." she asked slowly before Mikayla interrupted her.

"Were we what?" asked Mikayla sharply, her eyes darting up to stare into Lilly's angrily. "Lesbians? Gay? Fuck no!" But then the anger seemed to drain out of her, and her shoulders slumped as her gaze fell back onto the floor. "I wasn't, at least. But the more I think about Kase, maybe... Maybe she was. Or maybe she was at least in love with me. That'd explain how in the hell she put up with me all those years without suffocating me in my sleep."

Lilly battled her temper, which was still spiking in response to Mikayla's first harsh words, and she just barely managed to maintain her composure. "I wasn't going to ask if you were gay, Mikayla," she said, her words as icy as Mikayla's had been heated. "I was going to ask if you two were really close, closer than even best friends would normally be. Because that's how Miley and I were for years before we ever kissed for real."

"Oh," said Mikayla, seemingly chastised at Lilly's response. "Sorry, I thought you meant—"

"I know what you thought I meant," snapped Lilly. "Your mouth got that across quite well, thanks." Brooke's soft crying made Lilly stand quickly. "I think you probably need to go, Mikayla," Lilly said, her own feelings vacillating between anger and compassion for Mikayla. "I need to feed her, and then she'll be ready for a nap." _And I can have some time to think about all of this, and what it means for Hannah and Lola._

Mikayla stood, her face devoid of any expression as she walked to the door, Lilly right behind her. As they reached the door, Mikayla opened it and turned, stopping inside the doorway as she looked at Lilly. "This isn't easy for me to say, Lilly, but... thanks," she said quietly. "Thanks for listening to me, and thanks for being honest with me. There are way too many people around me who'll agree with everything I say, and it's nice to have someone who'll tell me what she really feels."

Lilly found herself smiling without really thinking about it; she really wasn't used to anything but arrogance and sass from Mikayla, but hearing her simple thanks seemed to humanize Hannah's rival even more than the last few minutes had. "You're welcome," Lilly replied. "Try to call ahead next time, though, okay? We've got some friends of ours from Tennessee in this week, and you probably don't want to have a bunch of people around when you're wanting to have a private girl-to-girl talk."

"Good point," said Mikayla, smiling more openly now. "What's your number?" She tapped the numbers into her phone as Lilly told her, hitting the Send button to ring Lilly's phone once. "Okay, now you'll know it's me calling next time. But please don't put my name with that number, just in case you were to lose your phone or something, okay?"

Lilly nodded. "I'll put some horrible name with it, I promise. Like Dandruff Danny."

"Dandruff Danny!" laughed Mikayla. "That's a good one! I'll have to remember that." She stopped laughing and said pleasantly, "I like having you as a friend, Lilly. I mean, I like Miley too, but she and Jake have that, you know, whole history thing, and I think it might be sort of weird for her to try and talk to me without old feelings coming up, you know?"

Lilly smirked as she bounced Brooke up and down twice, stopping her daughter's fussing and making her laugh happily. "Oh, I don't know," Lilly said, still trying not to laugh. "If you don't like him now, then I think all three of us are pretty much on the same page at this point. We'll have to tell you about it sometime." _Not._

"Deal," said Mikayla. "Look, I, uh, probably ought to take off before someone figures out I'm here and the paparazzi hit your house like a pack of vultures."

"Good idea," said Lilly with a nod, although she had other reasons for wanting to keep her and Miley's house off the radar of the press. "Talk to you later, Mikayla. Try to be yourself more often, rather than that stuck-up woman the public sees. I think people would like you better this way."

Mikayla stared at the young blonde holding her baby daughter. "I'll think about that," she finally said, "but in my business sometimes being nice is seen as a weakness. See you later, Lilly." She turned and walked to her car, opening the long door and sliding into the leather seat.

Lilly considered waving as she heard the engine roar to life, its power readily evident in the growl that rumbled forth. She watched the long, sleek gray Aston Martin Vanquish slide backwards down the short driveway, turning slowly before Mikayla shifted the automobile into Drive and sent the gunmetal vehicle roaring down the street.

The opening of the back doors drew Lilly's attention back into the house. She closed the front door and turned to see Amy, Dee and Miley all walking back into the house.

"We're back hon!" yelled Miley before she noticed Lilly standing just a few feet away from them. "Oops!" she said quickly, wincing as she saw Brooke's startled reaction, her face moving from surprise to crying. "Oh dang it, Brookie! Momma's sorry! Please don't cry!" She hurried over to her wife and daughter, but not in time to prevent the baby's first sobs.

"Nice job, sexy," said Lilly with a playful grin as she handed their daughter to Miley. "Your mess, you clean it up. I think she's still hungry, too, so that should be an easy job for you."

Miley grinned as she shifted Brooke to hold her securely with one arm. "I have just the right tool for the job," Miley teased, sticking her chest out slightly as she slid past Lilly, making sure to brush her butt against Lilly's hip with just the right amount of pressure.

"Mmm," mumbled Lilly, smiling at the sensual contact between her and her wife. Even in the most mundane of moments, such as dealing with a crying baby, just the slightest touch from Miley was still enough to send her libido into the red. It took quite a bit of self-control for Lilly not to follow Miley up the stairs, but she was determined not to leave their guests alone just yet. They had just gotten here, after all.

"Hey hon?" called Miley's voice from upstairs.

"Yeah, Miles?"

"You mind to come up here and take care of something for me?"

Lilly rolled her eyes and grinned. "Can you two amuse yourselves for a few minutes?" she asked their guests.

"What, like you and Miley are about to do?" said Dee with a knowing smirk.

Lilly smiled. "Don't burn the house down," she said as she hustled across the floor, hitting the stairs two at a time. Sometimes self-control was more than a bit overrated.

As Mikayla drove back toward Los Angeles, her thoughts continued to buzz as the scenery whipped past her. _I can't go against Margot directly. Not while she's still got enough on me to ruin me a hundred times over. But that doesn't mean I have to sit on my ass and do nothing._ She smiled to herself as the sun glared against her blue mirrored Revo sunglasses. _Maybe it's time to turn her game against her. It'll take a while to do it right, but I've got plenty of time. I've had a good teacher on how to be a manipulative bitch, that's for sure. _

"You've run the game until now, Margot," Mikayla said to herself, "but I know your weaknesses just like you know mine. Time to start putting them to use." She smiled grimly as she considered where to start first. "And if standing up for myself winds up costing me my career, then I'll sure as hell have a damn good time while I'm on top. Game on, bitch."

**Author's Afterword:** Okay, I know I said that I'd have this chapter up sooner than last time, but life is still topsy-turvy for me. Between family, work, Christmas shopping, keeping my family healthy and falling in love again, my plate is beyond full. Yes, you read that last sentence correctly. No details now, as my stories are about Miley and Lilly, not myself, but I'm both surprised and indescribably happy that sometimes life just seems to work out.

I'll try my best to pick up the pace on the last few chapters of this story, and again I apologize for the interminable delays getting these last two chapters up. Please bear with me, because this story is indeed winding toward its conclusion, and I think you'll love what remains to be told in this particular story! See you soon!

Jo


	25. Chapter 25: Two Sides of the Same Coin

**Author's Note:** Yes, I'm still alive, and this story is still going. I needed to take some time away from writing over the holidays to focus on my work and family, but I think I'm recharged enough to resume writing again. I'm sorry to everyone who's been waiting on this chapter, but there have been quite a few changes in my life and family, mostly good, some bad.

I want to take the time to thank **mileydreamer** for the dedication and enthusiasm shown in the many wonderful reviews posted for my stories. Hearing from happy readers always puts a smile on my face, so thank you immensely for brightening _my_ days! Your reviews are wonderful, and I love how you write them as stream-of-consciousness while you read each chapter. I hope to keep giving you chapters to review for a long time.

I'd also like to offer a special apology to all my readers. I never intended for there to be intervals so long between chapters, but sometimes life tosses us so much that we have to prioritize on our family first and everything else second. I'll always try to keep the turnaround time on a new chapter around two weeks, but sometimes it just takes longer. Thank you for having patience and still being here. I love all of you. And for those of you who noticed Dee's hair, she decided to color it for this story. She's like that sometimes. And as always for my chapters with song performances in them, I recommend playing the song in the background while you read. This chapter it's going to be The Killers' song "A Dustland Fairytale," so you might want to cue that up and have it ready.

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist or publication mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo K.

Chapter 25: Two Sides of the Same Coin

_So one day you found her crying, coiled up on the dirty ground_

_Her prince finally came to save her, and the rest she can figure out_

_But it was a trick and the clock struck twelve_

_Make sure to build her up brick by boring brick _

_Or the wolf's gonna blow it down_

-Paramore, "Brick by Boring Brick"

As the doorbell rang, Miley jumped up from where she had been sitting with Lilly on the couch. "Pizza's here!" she said happily, getting a soft cheer from Amy and applause from Lilly. Movie night had gone well for Miley, Lilly, Amy and Dee so far, but the four young women were getting hungry, and pizza had sounded awfully good.

After paying for the two pizzas and leaving the driver a generous tip, Miley closed the door and hurried over to the kitchen table, where the four young women attacked the food hungrily.

"So," said Lilly around a mouthful of hot cheesy goodness, "Miles and I are happy to see you two, but why'd you guys decide to fly out here as suddenly as you did?"

Amy and Dee glanced at each other, and the hints of worry and concern that danced across the young couple's faces spoke volumes to Miley and Lilly. "We, uh, sorta got in trouble with my mom," said Amy quietly, looking away from Dee and down at the floor before the small girl with dark blue hair reached out and lifted Amy's face back up so they could look in each other's eyes.

Dee paused for a few seconds and just smiled at Amy before she said, "Amy Hearon, I don't care what happens or who gets pissed off. You're my girlfriend and you're the woman I love, and I don't give a shit who knows that. I love you, A. Nothin's gonna ever change that, okay?"

Amy smiled and put her arms around Dee, closing her eyes and smiling with relief as she hugged her girlfriend tightly. Miley and Lilly patiently waited, knowing that moments like these were the building blocks of a lasting, loving relationship. After several moments Amy lifted her head and kissed Dee lightly on the lips. "I'm so glad we can do that here without worryin' about anybody catchin' us," she whispered, a pang of regret in her soft voice.

Dee returned the kiss, lingering on Amy's soft lips before saying, "No one's takin' you away from me, A, not ever. We're both grown women now, not little kids. We have our own home which _we_ pay for, and nobody can come in there and tell us what to do."

Amy sighed and looked over at where Miley and Lilly were standing, holding hands as they watched Brooke sleep in the portable playpen set up beside the couch and chair nearest the kitchen. She waited for Miley and Lilly to look back over to her before she said to them with a sigh, "My mom figured it out. And she went _beyond_ batshit crazy. She—" Amy's mouth trembled, then she turned and buried her head into Dee's shoulder, letting loose with sobs that tore at Miley's and Lilly's hearts.

"It's okay, A," whispered Dee, rubbing her girlfriend's back lovingly as she tried to comfort her. "She didn't mean the things she said, and you know that. She always flies off the handle when she gets mad and winds up apologizin' the next day for whatever it was she said, and you know that. We've both seen it plenty of times, just never at us until now."

"But what if she _does_ mean it?" moaned Amy, her voice muffled by Dee's shirt. "What if I never see the rest of my family again?"

"Then the two of you make your own family," said Miley as she put her arms around both Dee and Amy, with Lilly stepping up behind Miley and trying to embrace all three of them. "One where you accept everyone you love and care about, whether you agree with them or not."

"Ya'll ever have any trouble with your families?" asked Dee, stroking Amy's short dark brown hair as she continued to hold her girlfriend firmly.

"My family was pretty cool things," said Lilly, "Miley's was too, except for her Aunt Vicky, but she got over being a bitch and now she's okay with us."

"Vicky's Peyton and Mel's gramma, right?" asked Amy, getting nods in reply. "Well, yeah, she'd have to be cool with you, as much as those two girls worship the ground ya'll walk on."

Miley blushed right as Lilly's cell phone beeped. "Hello?" said Lilly as she held the phone up to her ear.

"_This is your friendly reminder about Hannah's concert tonight,"_ said the voice of Jen Kittrell, Hannah and Lola's manager. _"So don't fucking be late!"_

"You're smiling, aren't you?" Lilly asked, already knowing the answer to her question. "Since you know that Brooke can't hear you right now."

"_The fucking thought might have crossed my damn mind."_ Despite the profanity, the friendliness in Jen's voice was sincere. _"You two want me to have the limo pick you up tonight at DreamWorld or do you have other plans for transportation?"_

Lilly looked at Miley, who was now watching Lilly closely, obviously picking up on Lilly's sudden concern. _Concert tonight,_ Lilly mouthed at Miley, getting a wide pair of bright blue eyes as a result.

_Jen?_ Miley mouthed silently in reply. When Lilly nodded, Miley held out her hand for the phone. Lilly immediately handed it over; Miley took it and said, "Hey," lightly as she walked to the stairs, disappearing up them quickly. "Hang on," she whispered, hurrying down the hall until she was in their bedroom, the door safely closed behind her. "Okay, I can talk now," Miley said. "We had some friends fly in from Tennessee to visit us."

"_Ah. Forget about your own damn concert again?"_

"Hey, it happens sometimes! After all, we did just become mothers not too long ago. Full nights of sleep aren't exactly happenin' for us right now."

"_Well, I'd suggest you come up with something for your friends to do tonight. Unless you want them tagging along with Hannah and Lola. Which I wouldn't advise, by the way."_

"No, they don't know, and it's staying that way," said Miley, shaking her head no even though there was no way Jen could see her. "But we _could_ come up with some tickets for them, couldn't we?"

"_Fuck, yes. Good ones?"_

"Of course. They're really sweet people."

"_How many?"_

"Two. Front row."

"_Backstage passes?"_

"Not this time. They're pretty good friends of ours, and they're stayin' with us a few days. I'd prefer they not get a chance to watch Hannah and Lola together. Too risky."

"_Got it. I'll have someone print out tickets and bring them over to your house. That work for you?"_

"Sure does," said Miley, smiling. "Thanks, Jen. You're awesome."

"_Make sure you bring the right clothes tonight."_

"I will," Miley said with a nod. "See you tonight." She hung up, knowing Jen would do the same.

Back downstairs Lilly watched Miley make her way up the stairs before she did anything. Once Miley was out of sight Lilly turned around, only to find two pairs of eyes staring at her curiously. "Business for Miles," she said with a light shrug. "Hannah concert tonight, and she has to be there to make sure everything is set up right."

"She works for Hannah's record company, right?" asked Amy. "I mean, I think I heard either ya'll or Ruthie mention somethin' about that once."

"Yeah, she does the marketing for Hannah Montana, mainly," said Lilly truthfully. _Along with the dancing, singing, songwriting, performing and, well, everything else._ "And she's written a few songs for her, too."

"No shit?"

"No shit," Lilly replied with a soft smile. "If Hannah has a show, Miles is usually there." She nearly laughed at the full truth of that statement, but she managed to control herself.

Footsteps thumping down the stairs drew everyone's attention to Miley as she hurried down the stairs. "Well, looks like ya'll are gonna be busy tonight," she said with a pleased smile. "You two are gettin' tickets to see Hannah Montana tonight! She's got a concert right down the road, over in L.A., and _someone_ managed to get two last-minute tickets for her friends," Miley said, fanning herself while batting her eyes and looking away theatrically.

After a surprised silence, two squeals rang out from Amy and Dee, followed by them jumping up and down happily. It took a few seconds for the two of them to calm down, but eventually they managed to do so. "I'm not even gonna ask how you pulled that one," said Amy, hugging Dee tightly and they beamed at Miley. "But thank you, hon!"

"That is so freaking amazing," said Dee, a wide grin frozen on her face as she spoke. "Hell yeah!"

"It was my pleasure," said Miley, hugging first Dee, then Amy. "Sorry we can't sit with you, but I'll be busy backstage tryin' to make sure everything runs smooth, and I'm wantin' Lilly to be with me backstage."

"Who'll keep Brooke?" asked Amy.

Lilly glanced over to Brooke, who was now snoozing peacefully in her playpen. "Mom and Dad usually watch her for us whenever they can," she said.

Miley laughed once and added, "Yeah, I think Lilly's mom and dad want to just grab Brookie and keep her all the time." That comment drew laughs from everyone in the kitchen.

Several hours later, the concert was in full force. As Miley passed by on her way back to the dressing room, Lilly gently grabbed her wife's arm, claiming a warm kiss that made both young women pause noticeably. "When are you gonna do the new song?" she asked Miley after they pulled their lips apart just enough to speak, eyes still locked onto each other.

"Now," said Miley, smiling. "You see our girls in the front row?"

"How could I miss 'em?" replied Lilly, her own grin blossoming across her face. "Amy got up on Dee's shoulders and threw her bra at you!"

"Yeah, well," said Miley as she rolled her eyes, "she never was much for bein' shy." She looked over at the stage technicians hurrying across the stage, carrying wrenches and small flashlights as they went to work on several dark boxes arranged across the front of the stage. "I need to get changed for this next one," Miley said, kissing Lilly on the forehead.

"Yeah, that dress might not be the best outfit for all the wind," said Lilly, grabbing Miley's butt quickly as her wife hurried past her, turning to flash her a brilliant smile as she hurried toward her dressing room. She had stopped caring about fans both male and female throwing articles of clothing on the stage at her wife's concerts a long time ago; after a thorough washing, all those clothes went to one of the HLM Foundation's facilities where they would be given out to someone who needed them. "Make sure you protect those pretty blue eyes, sweetheart!"

"You got me the safety glasses, hon, remember?" Miley called out, smiling at Lilly before turning around and jogging down the hall. "And I promise to wear them!"

Lilly smiled as she turned back around to watch the stagehands lift the covers off the large Dyson Air Multipliers that had been securely bolted down to the front of the stage. She pulled out her phone and used her right hand to dash off a text message to her mother, letting her know that the concert was over halfway through and that she and Miley would be by to pick up Brooke by roughly ten or ten-thirty, depending on how many autograph seekers would be waiting for them once the concert was over.

To tell the truth, she was looking forward to seeing Hannah Montana's version of The Killers' "A Dustland Fairytale," and she had been ever since she and Miley has first batted the idea back and forth over breakfast one day. Both of them loved the song, and once Lilly shared her vision of performing the song with Miley, both of them had gotten excited at how good it sounded.

There was never any worry about whether Miley could sing the song or not; that was a given. The true concern shared only by Miley and Lilly was exactly how strong winds meant to simulate a cyclone would interact with Hannah's blonde wig. The first few "tests" were conducted by Lilly and Miley alone, first at home with a regular fan, then with a Dyson Air Multiplier. Once they had established that firmly clipping Hannah's blonde wig in place would indeed stand up to full force from one of the devices, they felt confident enough to bring the tests into the practice studio, where Miley and her equipment crew experimented with different placements of several of the powerful devices, finding the proper angles to kick up a heavy gale but keeping the most intense wind velocity just behind Hannah.

Still, Lilly found herself sweating slightly as she heard Miley's voice coming back down the hall. If this went wrong, if Miley were to step back into the vortex formed behind Hannah as the different streams of wind summed up to form their makeshift cyclone, then this could turn out to be a surprising performance indeed. They had never tested the hair clips at the heart of the man-made storm, and Lilly didn't want her wife to test them now. "Be careful, hon," she said, gently taking Miley's arm as her best friend passed by, now wearing a white leather jacket, a red shirt, blue jeans so worn and faded that they were nearly white and torn through in a few places, and heavy leather boots, topped off with rose-hued safety glasses to protect Miley's eyes from any grit that might be kicked up by the winds.

Miley smiled and kissed Lilly, being careful not to dislodge Lola's flame-red wig as she pulled her wife's head as close as possible. "It'll be okay, sweetheart," whispered Miley. "I promise. I know exactly how far I can move, and I'm not plannin' on steppin' back at all once those suckers get cranked up."

Lilly blinked twice, unable to tear her eyes away from how beautiful Hannah looked tonight. "You know I trust you," she said simply, not needing an answer or reply.

Miley hugged Lilly tightly, trying not to cry for some reason she couldn't pin down exactly. "I know," she replied softly. "And you'll never have a reason not to."

Lilly wiped carefully at her eyes, trying not to smear her sparkling eyeshadow. "Go on," she said as she playfully pushed Miley away. "You're holding up the show, you diva."

Miley returned Lilly's warm smile. "Yes, ma'am," she said, kissing Lilly on her lips quickly. As she pulled away, Lilly lifted her hand and carefully wiped her lip gloss off Miley's lips so Hannah's blonde hair wouldn't stick if the winds blew it across Miley's face. "Thanks, baby," whispered Miley, giving Lilly a lingering smile before turning and walking quickly back out onto the stage. The crowd's cheers and applause immediately surged back to full intensity as Miley took her position at the front of the stage, holding the microphone stand firmly as the music began to play.

As the keyboard softly played and Miley's voice began to sing, the audience quietened down quickly. She had changed some words from the original version of the song, such as replacing the year named in the original song, 1961 (sung as "sixty-one"), to 2001, which she sang as "zero-one." Miley had also made the lost love in the song a girl rather than a boy, which made the song more comfortable to her.

_Dustland fairytale beginning_

_Just another white trash county kiss_

_In '01, long brown hair, and foolish eyes_

_You look just like you want her to_

_Some kind of slick chrome American Dream_

_Blue jean serenade_

_Moon river, what'd you do to me_

_I don't believe you_

_Saw Cinderella in a party dress_

_She was lookin' for a nightgown_

_I saw the devil wrappin' up his hands_

_He's gettin' ready for the showdown_

_I saw the minute that I turned away_

_I got my money on a pawn tonight_

The breeze that stirred as the air circulators began to operate was notable but mainly just for show. Hannah's blonde hair lightly fluttered every now and then, until the pulse of the song shifted with that last line. The soft strains of the piano were joined by guitars, drums and bass, and Miley's voice picked up to match the instruments. The wind began to intensify, first mildly and then more powerfully just seconds later.

_Change came in disguise of revelation_

_Set her soul on fire_

_She said she always knew she'd come around_

The near-silent operation of the Dyson devices made it difficult for most of the audience to see where the gusts were coming from, but they could clearly see the effect of the winds on the band and, to a lesser extent, Hannah herself. The golden scarf that Miley had wrapped around her throat began to toss in what was now a healthy wind, its ends flipping up and down, side to side behind the singer.

_And the decades disappear_

_Like sinking ships but we persevere_

_God gives us hope_

_But we still fear what we don't know_

_The mind is poisoned_

_Castles in the sky sit stranded, vandalized_

_The drawbridge is closin'_

The force of the winds swirling across the stage again picked up in time with the music's increased intensity. Now Miley carefully stood her ground in the face of the strong winds, her legs spread and her right foot braced behind her to keep from being pushed back into the confluence of gusts behind her. Hannah's long blonde hair was briskly billowing behind her, not quite parallel to the stage but close to it. Backstage Lilly couldn't help but chew softly on a neatly manicured purple nail as she watched Miley stand her ground and sing.

_Saw Cinderella in a party dress_

_She was lookin' for a nightgown_

_I saw the devil wrappin' up his hands_

_He's gettin' ready for the showdown_

_I saw the ending when they turned the page_

_I threw my money and I ran away_

_Straight to the valley of the Great Divide_

_Out where the dreams all hide_

_Out where the wind don't blow_

_Out here the good girls die and the sky won't snow_

_Out here the bird don't sing, out here the field don't grow_

_Out here the bell don't ring, out here the bell don't ring_

_Out here the good girls die_

As the music paused for a split second, the fans were turned to their highest level; despite being suspended horizontally behind the rock star, Hannah's blonde hair showed no signs of slipping, making Lilly release a tightly-held breath from her pounding chest. As the gale screamed angrily, Miley continued to sing, her voice defiant and strong in the face of the indoor mini-cyclone. Bits of soft paper whipped through the air, conjuring the appearance of debris caught in the throes of a tornado while posing no real risk to anyone on stage. Miley's left arm released the microphone stand as her right hard continued to grip it tightly; she raised her left arm and pointed out toward the audience, her finger tracing a line just above their heads as she sang the final few lines.

_Now Cinderella don't you go to sleep_

_It's such a bitter form of refuge_

_Don't you know the kingdom's under siege_

_And everybody needs you_

_Is there still magic in the midnight sun_

_Or did you leave it back in '01_

_In the comfort of a young girl's eyes_

_Out where the dreams all hide_

As the winds died down and the band stopped playing, Miley let her left arm drop to her side. Her face was red and tingling from the wind, but her smile was radiant as she began to laugh at just how good that song, that performance had felt. The audience had been cheering before, but now those cheers became screams and shrieks of enthusiasm as all those in attendance rewarded everyone's effort in putting together that performance.

Miley grabbed the microphone and tugged it free of its stand, turning and using her free arm to gesture to her band. "The best band in the world, everybody!" she cried out to continued whistles and shouts. "And the best crew out there, too!" she said as she pointed first to stage right, then stage left. She tilted her head back and laughed again, pure joy at nailing such a tricky number pulsing through her entire body.

Lilly's hands were nearly numb, she was clapping so hard. She thought about whistling, but before she could do so Miley was jogging toward her, then Lilly's arms were around Miley as they spun around once, both young women laughing in delight. "That was amazing!" Lilly shouted, trying to be heard over the thundering applause. "Did you know it was gonna be _that _good?"

"Not a clue!" Miley shouted back, shaking her head in disbelief. "Good, yeah, we thought that, but there was too much that could've gone wrong for me to really relax!"

Lilly hugged Miley again, then she grabbed her best friend's head with both hands and kissed her passionately, not even bothering to wait a second before her lips had Miley's spread apart and their tongues slid across each other. After several seconds of bliss, the two young women slowly leaned their heads back slightly. "I'm not even going to argue with you, hon," Lilly said pleasantly. "And anyway, I had a backup plan just in case you-know-what _had_ happened."

Miley raised her right eyebrow. Lilly nearly laughed; with her head resting on Miley's left shoulder, there was no way she could have seen the facial gesture.

"Did you raise your eyebrow at me?" asked Lilly with a smile, not lifting her head from its happy resting place.

There was a pause before Miley answered, "Maybe." When a few seconds passed without Lilly replying, Miley sighed. "Oh, alright! Just tell me already."

Lilly grinned. She lifted her head up so she could look into Miley's shining soft blue eyes. "I was going to kill all the lights at the breaker box," she said matter-of-factly. "Did you know all the stage and floor lights are controlled by that one breaker box?" She pointed to a large dark gray panel set flush with the wall, just ten feet away from them. When Miley didn't answer, Lilly proudly answered for her, "Well, I did. And I made sure it was unlocked before you went on stage for this song."

Miley's mouth hung slightly open for three seconds before she shook her head and said, "Overprotective wife say what?"

Lilly turned Miley around and pushed her back toward the stage, where the cries for Hannah were continuing, augmented by the thunder of thousands of feet stomping in unison. "Go back out there and dazzle 'em some more, baby," she said as she lightly pushed her best friend forward. "And you better not slack off!" she called out as Miley walked away with a walk not unlike a slow swagger. "Not following a performance like that!"

Miley whirled around, a serious look on her face. "Hey! I'm Hannah Montana! Slackin' off is not in my vocabulary!"

Lilly wiggled her fingers toward the stage. "Then get your cute little vocabulary back out there, woman!" she said teasingly. "Our friends want some more, so you better give it to them!"

Miley grinned and blew her wife a kiss, then she turned and jogged back out onto the stage, much to the delight of the roaring audience. Lilly just shook her head, still smiling as she leaned against the wall at her familiar vantage point just off the stage and watched Hannah Montana once again work her magic.

As Miley bounded back onto the stage for the next song and the crowd's cheers nearly doubled in intensity, a young woman with blonde hair and pink-framed glasses stopped as she was leaving the arena floor and looked over her shoulder to see what the crowd was excited about. Had either Miley or Lilly been close enough, the woman's dark eyes would have been oddly familiar, but they were the only people inside the arena who had a chance of recognizing Mikayla in her disguise tonight. After a few seconds of watching Hannah laughing and waving at the audience, Mikayla turned her back on the singer she both hated and admired.

_She did a great job the whole concert, but that last song... Damn, that was something else._ Mikayla's thoughts went round and round, replaying Hannah's rendition of "A Dustland Fairytale" repeatedly as she made her way to the parking garage. She didn't take off her wig and costume glasses until she had gotten into her Aston Martin Vanquish, closing the door solidly. She tossed the pieces of her disguise into the empty passenger seat, triggering an unexpectedly sad realization. _I've never had anyone sit in that seat since I bought this car last year. How fucking pathetic is that?_ She started the car, her familiar scowl firmly in place once again as she backed out of her parking place, then roaring out of the parking garage into the night.

When the door to Miley's and Lilly's home opened to let Dee and Amy in, it was well after eleven o'clock. Miley and Lilly looked up from where they had fallen asleep on the couch, Lilly sitting at the far end of the couch facing the door with Miley lying back against her, her head nestled comfortably in Lilly's lap and her curly hair sprawled such that it completely covered Lilly's waist and hips. Miley licked her lips before she smiled at their guests and said, "So did ya'll have a good time at the concert?"

"Do the Vols wear orange?" Amy shot back with a wide grin, stopping and holding an arm out in front of her as if she was trying to hold Miley and Lilly in place. "Can you say 'best concert ever'? 'Cause that's sure what _we_ saw tonight!" She took a moment and gazed at where Miley and Lilly lay on the couch. "Have you two actually done anything this evenin', or did you just spend the day bein' lazy?"

Miley leaned her head back far enough that she could look up and fleetingly catch Lilly's eyes before smiling. "Oh, just bein' lazy, I guess," she said with a teasing smile as she looked back toward their friends.

"Yeah," added Lilly. "I mean, what else would we be doing tonight, really?" She kissed the top of Miley's head. "Can you think of anything you'd rather be doing tonight, Miles?"

Miley wiggled slightly, settling herself in her wife's snug embrace. "Other than you, Lilly Bear?" she asked, winking at their two friends.

"Hush, you," Lilly said softly. "Just because my mom and dad wanted to keep Brooke tonight doesn't mean you automatically get lucky, you know."

Miley slowly rolled over in Lilly's embrace. She stared into deep blue eyes whose pupils grew until their blackness nearly consumed the color surrounding them entirely, finally whispering, "Yeah it does. And you know it just as much as I do." As she pressed her lips to Lilly's, Miley shivered fiercely as she felt the tip of Lilly's tongue brush across her mouth.

"I think I'm pretty wiped out, Amy," Dee said quickly, turning to look at her girlfriend. "You want to hit the sack?"

"Actually, I think I want to take a walk on the beach in the moonlight," said Amy. "I think that might be a very romantic thing to do."

Dee grinned. "I need to get my swimsuit on."

"I'll grab it for you," Amy said, smacking her girlfriend on the butt and racing to the stairs.

Dee stopped near the couch, where Miley and Lilly had stopped kissing and were looking quizzically at the short girl with dark blue hair. "Thanks again," Dee said, rubbing the back of her neck nervously. "I mean, for the tickets and everything. I was wantin' to do somethin' nice for Amy while we were out here, but heck, I wasn't plannin' on gettin' to do it the first night!"

"You're welcome, Dee," Lilly said. "And it was our pleasure. Now you can really have something to tell everybody about when you get back home."

"Yeah," Dee said quietly. "Look, I'm not really sure what's gonna happen with Amy and her mom. I mean, she was really upset about what her momma told her, and she still won't tell me all that she said. But tonight I got my Amy back, and I can't thank you two enough for that."

"C'mon, slowpoke!" yelled Amy, feet slapping the steps as she sped down them, tossing a bright yellow bikini at her girlfriend. "Get your ass changed, so we can get out there!" As Dee stepped past Amy, the two of them grinned and kissed quickly. "Love you, Deandra."

"Love you too, sexy," said Dee as she stepped into the downstairs bathroom, closing the door as she turned on the light.

"I think we're heading to bed," said Miley as she carefully stood, stretching her back as Lilly likewise rose to her feet. Lilly's hand slid along Miley's stomach where her shirt had ridden up, raising goosebumps across the exposed skin. "Mmm," murmured Miley as she closed her eyes and covered Lilly's strong hand with her own. "Oh yeah. Definitely headin' to bed."

Back in Los Angeles, Mikayla sat on her upstairs balcony, drinking a mix of orange juice, pear juice and ginger ale as she looked up at the moon in the sky. Wordlessly she lifted the tumbler, draining the glass in one gulp. Years of regrets gave the sweet drink a bitter aftertaste, and Mikayla shuddered as she closed her eyes, unwilling to gaze into the moon's glow any longer. Not when it was reflecting her own fears back at her. _Stop it, Mickey. What are you going to do about it tonight?_

She stood, turning her back on the bright disc of the moon as she went back inside, closing and locking the balcony door behind her. She made her way down the hallway and then the stairs with only the illumination of a few night lights scattered around the house. It was more comfortable for her to be in the dark here; it lessened the chance of seeing haunted eyes reflected back at her from the mirrors around the house.

As she set her glass in the sink for the maid to deal with tomorrow, Mikayla made her way back through the living room on her way to her bedroom. She hadn't felt like company tonight, so she had skipped out early on the party she had been at previously. Sex was nice, but sometimes it just wasn't worth sharing your private time with anyone else.

A light left on in one of the ground floor rooms caught her attention as she passed the doorway. She stopped and looked in at the mostly empty room; boxes both stacked and half-opened occupied part of the floor, and the desk against the wall had more books and papers spread out across it. She glanced at the papers there, grimacing when she saw the latest reports from her counseling sessions and drug tests.

_Patient making some progress in exploring feelings but remains unwilling to discuss what prompted her four-year disappearance. This obfuscation makes me even more curious about what she continues to hide._ Mikayla smiled coldly as she read the words of the report she had paid one of the therapist's staffers to obtain for her. "You and everybody else, bitch," she said to herself.

_She continues to test negative for alcohol, opioids, benzodiazepines, barbituates, amphetamines, cocaine metabolites, and marijuana on all samples, both scheduled and random. No evidence of tampering noted. Recommend we reduce random testing frequency due to strong evidence that patient no longer consumes alcohol or takes illicit drugs and has indeed overcome her addictions. Constant vigilance remains a must to prevent relapse, given the expected emotional ups and downs of a music celebrity's lifestyle._

Mikayla tossed the papers back down onto the desk. They'd never know where the strength to overcome her addictions had come from, and that was for the best. Bad enough that she had to know them. _If I hadn't have been drunk that night, Kasey... _

Mikayla shuddered. She sat down heavily in the black leather chair in the corner of the room, next to a partially-opened box. _ If I just had taken the time to ask you what was going on, given you the chance to explain that Jake was taking advantage of you while you were drunk, then I might not have walked off and left you there with him. You wouldn't have freaked out and tried to find me, driving off while you were still too drunk to walk straight._

Mikayla's pride stubbornly stood its ground, refusing to let more than a few tears spill forth as the cascade of bitter memories slammed into her mind. The sight of her bright red Lotus zooming past her, Kasey waving as she tried to stop. The sudden acceleration as Kasey drunkenly hit the accelerator instead of the brake. The split-second sight of her best friend racing into the middle of the busy intersection, when Mikayla knew in her heart what was about to happen. And then the sickening crunch of impact, then another, then another as the small sports car was pulverized by oncoming traffic. The cold terror of running to the intersection, the desperate hope that maybe, just maybe Kasey was still alive. And then the cold realization when she saw the blood sprayed across the wreckage of her car, pooling on the asphalt next to another puddle of some dark liquid, silent testimonial that her best friend was dead.

Mikayla turned in the chair, suddenly needing something, anything to focus on other than the memories of her best friend's death. And so she found herself opening the box that she swore she would never open, not ever again, because the memories and guilt it held were terrible indeed.

Before she knew what she was doing, Mikayla had ripped the tape off of the plastic tub and removed the lid. As she looked into the past she had tried so hard to forget, the past she had tried to drink away, to fuck away, to drug into submission, only to once again be staring it in the face. With a trembling hand, she lifted the ultrasound picture, staring at it for long moments. She reached out to brush her fingertips across the slick, glossy surface of the picture, as if she could reach across the years and miles and somehow comfort her child before the end. "I'm so sorry," she said, knowing that she could never be forgiven for what she had done to that child. Not by her family, not by her fans, not by her church, not by her God, and never by herself. Some things, once done, are irreversible, forever changing the lives of all involved.

With great willpower, she placed the ultrasound picture down on the box's lid. She lifted out another picture, taken just two weeks after Kasey's death. Mikayla was seventeen, her body not even hinting at the pregnancy that she had just found out about the morning she took that picture. Even then she had already known what she was going to do. A teenage pregnancy would have been the kiss of death for a pop star whose audience was mainly teens and tweens, that much was certain, and back then she would have done anything to save her career.

The feeling of loneliness that had settled around her since Kasey's death had never been more numbing the morning of the procedure. Even while she was on the surgical table, Mikayla refused to admit the truth of what she was doing. Instead she focused on her promise to Kasey, that she would become the biggest pop star in the world and dedicate her success to her absent best friend.

_But would Kasey have wanted it this way? Would she have wanted all this blood on her hands? On MY hands?_ Struggling with those haunting questions had driven Mikayla deeper and deeper into a self-destructive spiral, culminating in an overdose that had nearly killed her. The one good thing that Margot had done for her had been to get her out of the country and put her into a clinic in the Bahamas that specialized in discrete treatment of drug and alcohol addiction. It was there that Mikayla found the strength to overcome her addiction, and for a brief, fleeting moment she found hope in her future.

And then Margot had shown her what she was carrying in her locked briefcase.

Instantly all hope for Mikayla was gone, swept away in the sickening understanding of the hold which Margot now had over her and her career. She had already decided to resume her music career out of her promise to Kasey, but now that dream had been tarnished by Margot's taint.

Five minutes later the black metal gates to the Beverly Hills estate opened, letting Mikayla's Aston Martin rumble through them as they parted. She hit the street accelerating, shifting angrily as she roared away from her home and those damned memories she could briefly outrun but never escape. She didn't say a word, not even to herself, as she drove. When she reached the nearby church she had humorlessly begun to consider hers, she slowed just enough to make the turn into the parking lot, tires squealing as she cut the wheel and guided the car into the parking place nearest the entrance. She yanked the keys out of the ignition and forcefully closed the door as she strode up the walkway to the oversized wooden door.

As she reached the door, Mikayla froze as her fingers were about to touch the dark wood. For long, agonizing seconds the young woman stood there, motionless, burning to open the door and go inside the sanctuary but unable to make herself do so. This was different from smiling for the cameras or making a public appearance at morning Mass; those she could do effortlessly, carrying a penitent smile as long as the photo op required. This was altogether different, in more ways than Mikayla could count.

For long, painful minutes she stood that way, fingers just inches away from the promise held within the consecrated building. Finally the trembling hand dropped in defeat, fingers clenched tightly into a fist as Mikayla sat down roughly on the stone path, crying softly at first but quickly becoming heaving sobs of anguish. She bowed her head as her tears fell onto the ground, desperately in need of forgiveness but unwilling to forgive herself.

It was nearly sunrise before she finally left.

**Author's Afterword:** This chapter is now officially the hardest one I've had to write, not technically but in terms of sustaining motivation while writing it. I've written and rewritten it entirely, and I think it's finally happy with the end result. Again, my deepest apologies for this chapter taking forever and a day to get posted. I tried to make up for it by revealing more than I had planned of what haunts Mikayla, although there's still more to be revealed about the tragic young singer. Hope it's been at least partially worth the wait! I'll be starting on the next chapter immediately, in an attempt to not get too far behind this time. Some of the real-life issues that have been consuming my free time are starting to wind down, but several remain. Hopefully I can make my self-imposed deadline this time. I love and appreciate all of you, and I'll see you soon!

Jo


	26. Chapter 26: Wading Out Deeper

**Author's Note:** Hm. And I thought that I couldn't be more overwhelmed back when writing the previous chapter. Let's just say that lots of things are going on both at home and at work, most of them good at least, but stress is stress regardless of the cause. I typically don't watch the Grammys, but I did check out Pink's stunning performance at this year's ceremony. I truly think that was the best performance I've ever seen at the Grammys, and I mean _ever_. I was a bit disappointed that Paramore didn't win, but seeing their video for "Brick by Boring Brick" made me like them even more. Consider my nomination for Video of the Year cast. Now get reading! You've been patient and waited long enough, haven't you?

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist or publication mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo K.

Chapter 26: Wading Out Deeper

_Keep your feet on the ground_

_When your head's in the clouds_

-Paramore, "Brick by Boring Brick"

The sound of soft voices carrying along the early morning breeze gently tugged Lilly out of slumber. Normally her brain simply would have ignored such a quiet conversation, but as soon as it recognized one of those voices as Miley's, Lilly's brain decided that her attention was required.

"Look, Amy, all I'm sayin' is that you've got to talk to your mom _sometime_ before you two go home! Otherwise you're just askin' for trouble."

"You didn't see her, Miley. You didn't hear what she called me, what she called Dee! Lord have mercy, Dee's got a heart big enough to love everybody in the world, but Mom called her everything but the damn Antichrist!"

"She's your _mom_, Amy! Give her a chance to—"

"_NO_, Miley! I won't let anybody talk to my girlfriend like that, even my momma! If she's not wantin' a lesbian for a daughter, then she don't need to have one!"

"So what, you're just never going to talk to your mom again? You think that's the best way to handle this?"

"She's the one who said that she couldn't handle me and Dee seein' each other, Miley. Dee's been like a second daughter to her for nearly ten years, but she can't handle her now that she knows that she's sharin' a bed with me? I can give up havin' my mother in my life, if that's what it costs to be with Dee."

"Amy, you don't know what you're saying."

"What, and you_ DO?!" _There was a long, painful pause, then, more softly, "Shit, Miley, I'm sorry. I'm really, really sorry. I just get so mad—"

Amy's voice trailed off as her attention was drawn to feet thumping down the stairs at a full run, taking them two at a time until Lilly was close enough to jump the last five steps, landing in a crouch before springing back up and hurrying to Miley's side. As Lilly reached her wife, Miley fell into her arms, crying softly as she buried her face into Lilly's neck, bare except for the thin strap of her camisole across her shoulder. Lilly whispered softly, tenderly stroking Miley's long, curly brown hair as she used her voice to soothe her partner's hurt.

Amy bit her index finger as she watched her two friends shut out the world around them, only focusing on each other at that moment. "I'm sorry," she muttered, looking up only to have her words catch in her throat when she locked gazes with Lilly's ice blue eyes blazing back at her. She had never seen Lilly angry before, and the incongruity of such fury in the eyes of someone she knew to be kind and loving took her breath away. After swallowing twice against an increasingly dry throat, Amy finally managed to croak, "Can I tell her?" as she pointed slowly at Miley's back.

Lilly continued to stare daggers at Amy for several seconds before she lifted her head enough to nod once. "Don't hurt her again," she said, her voice low and threatening.

Lilly's eyes remained intensely focused on their friend as Amy carefully approached the two of them. Only when Amy lightly touched Miley's back and whispered, "Please forgive me, Miley," did Lilly finally close her eyes. She felt a single tear escape the corner of her right eye, sliding like quicksilver down her cheek only to lose itself in Miley's soft curls.

Miley placed a kiss on Lilly's neck, turning as she felt Lilly's grip loosen without entirely letting go of her wife. Miley looked into Amy's sad eyes, and she could tell that her friend truly did feel terrible about lashing out at her. "Okay, I forgive you," Miley said with her deceptively deep voice, allowing a hesitant smile to creep across her reddened face, cheeks lined with wet trails down them. "But don't ever say anything like that again, okay?" she added as the smile quickly disappeared, replaced by a more somber expression. "Trust me, havin' your momma is much better than not havin' her, whether ya'll are fightin' or not."

Amy nodded. "I know," she said sheepishly. "I can't believe I said all that to you, Miley. Sweet Jesus, this whole thing with Momma has me torn up six ways from Sunday."

Miley's face lit up as an idea occurred to her. "I think what you need is to talk to somebody who's gone through this herself," she said. She turned to Lilly and asked, "Why don't you take Dee down to the skate park this morning, hon? And I'll see if I can track down Sarah."

Lilly nodded happily, proud of her best friend's thinking. "That's an awesome idea, Miles!"

"You two need to get some skatin' in while they're here, anyway." Miley looked at Lilly with a knowing smirk. "I know it's just been killin' you to wait, too."

Lilly curled her toes against the floor, hugging Miley warmly. "You know me so well, lovergirl," she said happily. "Make sure you pick up Brooke from Mom and Dad's, okay?"

"Like I could forget my little Lilly Junior?" teased Miley. She kissed Lilly deeply, wrapping her arms around her wife as she closed her eyes and breathed Lilly's scent, the essence that was all blonde hair and perfect skin, fiery love and freezing temper, best friend and sister and lover all at once. "I love you, Lilly," Miley whispered as she brushed her lips across Lilly's left cheek. "You're my life, honey, you and our daughter."

"I love you too, Miley, and you know I feel the same way," Lilly whispered back as she allowed her eyes to flutter open, pulling herself out of the same blissful state. "We'll be careful, I promise."

"I know you will, baby," Miley said. "Call or text when you're done, okay?"

"Will do!" said Lilly as she bounded up the stairs to wake up Dee.

Miley looked over at Amy, who was staring out the glass door at the ocean's breaking waves. She walked over to her friend and put her arm around the shorter girl, hugging her lightly as she said, "Come on. I'll buy you breakfast, then we have a friend we want you to meet who's been through this stuff with her parents already."

A little over two hours later, Lilly plopped down onto one of the shaded benches at the skate park less than a mile away from her home. She unsnapped her helmet's strap and set it down beside her as she took a long drink of her orange Gatorade, sighing contently after she swallowed. She pulled her phone out of her skate bag she had retrieved from the locker she kept at the skate park, checking her messages. As soon as she saw Miley's message, she tapped the button to call her wife.

Dee was using the water fountain to soak her hair, standing up to shake her short dark blue hair out once she was appropriately cooled off. She grinned as she saw Lilly trying not to laugh, and a broad smile stretched across her face. Even though this was supposed to be a relaxing trip for both her and Amy, Dee had been knotted up internally ever since they had left Tennessee. Today, however, was already off to a brilliant start, with the last two hours of skating serving to burn off massive amounts of tension she had been carrying around.

As Dee took a seat beside Lilly in the shade, hair still dripping onto her shirt, she closed her eyes and leaned her head back, resting it against the cool concrete wall. "So has your wife managed to convince my girlfriend to chill out yet?"

Lilly smiled as glanced at Dee out of the corner of her eye. "Good," she said into her phone, obviously pleased with whatever Miley was telling her. "Okay, hon. See you back at the house. Give Brookie a kiss for me, and save a kiss for yourself, too, sexy. Love you." She snapped her phone shut and tucked it away into the pocket of her shorts. "That would be a yes," she said to Dee, turning to look at her friend. "Sounds like talking to Sarah really helped Amy see that this isn't the end of the world."

"About damn time," Dee muttered. "I mean, I know that Amy wants to be with me, even if her family does totally flip out over us bein' together, but I really want her to stop lettin' all this eat her up inside."

"Yeah, I know it has to be hurting you, seeing her all twisted up this way," Lilly said knowingly. "I mean, I felt the same way about Miley when her aunt Vicky let her have it that first time." Lilly snickered before adding, "Of course, she had some real good stuff to say about me, too."

"Vicky?"

"Yeah. Called me a temptress and a whore, if I remember right. It was something like that, anyway."

Dee laughed, shaking her head slightly. "Yeah, that sounds like Vicky. Always did love her Bible vocabulary, 'specially when she gets all worked up about somethin'."

Lilly smiled as she playfully slapped Dee's back. "I think that talking to Sarah'll really help Amy about the whole Mom thing. Heck, Sarah's parents wouldn't talk to her for a month when she came out to them, and they all still lived in the same house back then!"

"Wow," said Dee with a whistle. "Well, I hope it don't take Amy's mom that long to settle down. I kinda like her no-bake cookies."

Lilly looked at Dee; the two of them held straight faces for a few seconds before dissolving into sputtering laughter. Lilly put her arm around Dee and hugged her friend. "I think the two of you are going to be just fine, girl," she said, adding her own silent prayer for just that.

At the Dyseni Records building in Los Angeles, Mikayla carried a half-full box of office supplies into the office of Lonnie Walters, the Assistant Vice President over her and also brother to her caustic manager Margot. "Here's that stuff I was telling you about," Mikayla said as she tipped the box slightly while setting it on Lonnie's desk. A small stack of loose objects she had carefully arranged atop the items in a corner of the box slid off, clattering neatly to the floor. "Shit," she said lightly, smiling as she turned her back to Lonnie. She slowly bent down, making sure to give him a good look at her rear through the extremely tight white shorts she was wearing. She had even gone so far as to wear panties with thin pink stripes, which she knew for a fact were visible through the sheer material of her shorts. She took her time picking up the small things on the floor, shifting slightly once to maximize his visibility before she finally straightened up just as teasingly as she had bent over. She turned, flashing a confident smile that only grew as she casually surveyed the bulge in the front of his dress pants. _Gotcha_, she thought as her smile grew even more. "See something you like, Lonnie?" she asked offhandedly, feigning nonchalance but now supremely confident that her plan was going to work.

"Well, uh, I—" Lonnie sputtered, his face increasingly resembling a beet as he tried to form a coherent sentence.

Mikayla tossed her hair once, locking her eyes onto his. "It's okay, Lonnie," she cooed softly. "I know you want me. And I'm okay with that." She closed the door to his office, then she slowly walked around his desk to face him. She leaned back against the large desk, positioning her right leg between his legs slowly. Now the bulge in his pants was taking rigid shape, prompting her to open her mouth slightly as she continued to smile. She didn't say anything else as she began to rub her leg against the inside of his right leg. Letting silence hang in the air would intensify his interest, and it only took a few seconds before the older man spoke.

"Aren't you, uh, seeing somebody?" he asked nervously, sweat beginning to form on his forehead.

_Oooh, nice return, Mr. Walters. Make it sound like you actually care about my relationship when really you're just wanting to pull my shorts down and fuck me right here, right now. I think you've played this game before._ "Nah, nothing serious," she said, continuing to project disinterest just enough to pique his excitement even further. She blinked twice, then stared intensely into his eyes as she carefully said, "But I could be," adding after a pause, "If he could keep it a secret, that is. Don't want any more bad publicity."

Lonnie swallowed hurriedly, his heart hammering inside his chest. "I think that could be arranged," he finally squeaked out as he loosened his tie. "I'd, uh, really like that," he added with his attempt at a charming smile.

Mikayla smirked as she reached across his desk to retrieve a piece of paper, stretching enough to make her cropped t-shirt rise along her bare ribs. She grabbed a pen and scribbled her cell phone number on it, folding the paper and tucking it into his shirt pocket once she was done. "Call me tonight, after eight," she said softly. Without waiting for a reply, she stood and stretched, her short shirt again lifting high enough to reveal her pierced navel and the thin twin silver chains that dangled down two inches from the silver charm there. "If you think you can handle me, that is," she added with a wink before she turned and strode confidently out of his office. _Phase One, disgusting as it might be, has officially begun._

Three days later, Miley and Lilly hugged Amy and Dee goodbye as the two Tennessee girls prepared to board their flight back home.

"I'm glad you and your mom finally talked," Miley said to Amy, poking her long finger into her shorter friend's chest playfully. "Took you two long enough."

"Yeah, well, that's the Hearons for you," Dee said quickly, leaving Amy open-mouthed.

"I was gonna say that," Amy muttered, only to draw a happy hug from her girlfriend. "And you're the girl who's shackin' up with one!"

Dee kissed Amy on the lips, still quietly marveling at how open the two of them could act in California, where the only people who knew them were friends. "Best trick I ever landed," Dee said confidently. "In a skating way!" she quickly added. "Not tryin' to call you a hooker, babe."

Lilly covered her mouth with the hand that wasn't holding baby Brooke, trying to conceal her amusement at Amy and Dee's teasing until she heard Miley laugh heartily. She smacked Miley's arm, drawing a dirty look from her wife. "Be nice, Miles."

"Why don't you keep both hands on our daughter, _honey?"_ Miley said, overly sweet words dripping with sarcasm.

"I can hold her just fine with this one and pop you with the other. When you deserve it, of course." Lilly batted her eyes and returned Miley's teasing smile. "But I love you!"

Now Miley's smile became warm and genuine as she drank in the sight of her best friend and wife holding their daughter, sunlight from the large window beside them illuminating Lilly in a golden glow. "I love you too, Lil," she said, tenderly leaning forward and kissing first her wife, then their child. The two of them turned to see their friends watching them carefully. "What?" asked Miley loudly. "Ya'll not ever seen two mommas and their daughter before?"

"Not two quite like you and Lilly," Amy said with a smile. "Thanks for havin' us out here. And for puttin' up with my mini-breakdown."

"Anytime," Lilly said as she hugged Amy with her free arm. "That's what friends are for."

Dee stepped forward to hug Lilly next. "And thanks for bein' there for my girlfriend. We're, uh, still sorta new at this whole bein' out stuff."

Lilly couldn't help but smile at Dee's shyness. "You'll get used to it, girl," she said confidently. "I promise."

"I hope so," replied Dee, "but I hope our families get used to it first."

"Amen to that," said Amy as she took Dee's hand. "Okay, we need to get on the plane before they make the last call."

The two couples waved at each other, then Amy and Dee turned and walked to the gate.

"Call us when you get back to Tennessee!" Miley said loudly.

"Absolutely!" Amy called over her shoulder as they handed their boarding passes to the attendant.

Miley, Lilly and Brooke watched out the window until the plane had taxied away from the terminal, then they moved to the other side of the airport, continuing their vigil until the plane had pulled away from the runway, quickly rising into the blue sky as it flew away from the California ground.

Miley and Lilly walked away from the airport in a comfortable silence, holding hands as the background noise of another jet taking off accompanied them across the parking lot. "So you still going into the office today?" Lilly asked as she buckled Brooke into her brightly colored infant carseat.

Miley nodded. "Yup. Got to pick up the rest of that stuff Jen's put together for the Foundation before I hit the gym."

As she clicked the buckle into place, Lilly stood up and smiled across the car at her wife. "I'm proud of you for taking this _American Gladiators_ thing so seriously, Miles. And I know you're gonna do great."

"Not so sure about that," muttered Miley, "but I'd prefer not to embarrass myself on television if I can help it."

"You won't embarrass yourself, sweetheart," said Lilly as she slid into the driver's seat of their sedan.

Miley was quiet for a minute as they drove before she asked, "What if Mikayla beats me?"

Lilly glanced over at her wife, who was looking out the side window. Even though Miley's back was turned to her, Lilly could feel the worry coursing through her best friend's body without having to see the lines of concern etched into her forehead. "Well, what if she beats you?" she asked nonchalantly.

Miley turned to look at her wife. "Uh, I coulda swore I asked you that question first. So you kind of have to answer me first."

Lilly waited a few seconds until they stopped at a traffic light. She turned to look at Miley as she said, "Miley, if she beats you, then she beats you." She smiled warmly, then she shrugged and said, "So what? It's not like it makes her better than you are at singing or performing. It just means she was better at running obstacle courses and playing games than you were on one night."

Lilly turned her eyes back to the road, sending the car into motion again as the light turned green. She reached across the console and took Miley's hand, running her fingers against her wife's as they gripped each other, love and need mixed in their tight grasp. "I want you to win, too, honey," continued Lilly, "but I'm going to love you just as much whether you win or lose. Just go out there, try hard, and have fun no matter where you finish."

Miley smiled and moved a small mass of curls out of her face. "You always know just what to say to me, baby," she said happily. "Whether it's to cool me down or heat me up, your mouth knows just what to do."

"Miley Truscott!" Lilly squealed, her mouth nearly wide open in shock. "You are being a _naughty_ pop star today!"

Miley grinned and bent over to place a kiss on the back of Lilly's hand she was still holding. "Yeah, but I'm your naughty pop star and no one else's. And you love me for it."

"Among other things," Lilly replied, flashing her own smile for her wife. "What time were you wanting to be at the gym?" she asked with a sly grin. "Because I was thinking of another workout we could do if Brooke takes a long nap..."

Mikayla awoke the next day to the sunlight streaming into her bedroom. She grimaced as she slid across sheets wet with her cold sweat, grateful to reach the edge of the mattress and step onto the floor. She took her phone from beside the bed and checked it for any messages she might have missed. As she stared at the zigzag pattern of her phone's wallpaper, a thought occurred to her. It was such an unusual thought for the young woman that it felt alien even considering it, but the more she thought about it the better it sounded.

Mikayla rolled over onto her back, pulling the sheets over her naked body as she flipped through the touchphone's list of stored numbers, finally settling on one particular entry. She hesitated only a second before hitting the Call button.

As the sounds of a buzzing ringtone echoed from her phone, Lilly stopped her early morning run along the beach. She settled into a relaxed walk as she retrieved her phone and hit the Send button. "Hello?" she asked, not bothering to check her caller ID before answering.

"_Hey Lilly. What are you doing today?"_

Lilly stopped walking, frowning slightly and wrinkling her forehead briefly as she tried to place the voice. "Mikayla?" she asked.

"_Yeah, it's me. You have plans for today?"_

"Umm, I've got plans for tonight," she said simply. "I'm doing my morning exercise right now."

"_Oh, you at the gym or something?"_

Mikayla's voice sounded eager, almost anticipatory, and Lilly grimaced as she mentally pictured being at a gym and having Mikayla and her ego appear, bringing paparazzi and chaos with her. "No, just doing a run on the beach this morning," she replied. "I normally go surfing, but sometimes we do a run, sometimes we ride our bikes. Brooke didn't get much sleep last night, and Miley was up with her more than I was, so she needed to sleep in this morning." _Why am I telling her all this?_

"_Lilly, it's not even seven in the morning. It's too damn early to be running."_

"Nah, it's the best time. It's not had time to get really hot yet, and there's not many people on the beach this early, mainly just the diehard surfers. They're pretty cool." Lilly left out that she was one of the diehard surfers herself, and that she knew most of the regulars on the beach near her home.

"_If you say so, I guess. Listen, would you want to maybe eat lunch with me after while? I was hoping we could... talk some more. You know, if that's okay with you."_

Lilly could detect the hint of trepidation in Mikayla's voice, and just like before that suppressed fear triggered a desire to try and learn more about Hannah's puzzling rival. _She just wants to be your friend, Lilly. Give her the benefit of the doubt. You know the industry. You know L.A. Real friends are hard to come by. You need to give her a chance._ Lilly nodded to herself, hoping that she wasn't somehow betraying her wife by trying to be friends with Mikayla. She and Miley had talked about it several times recently, however, and Miley was in complete agreement with Lilly becoming more friendly with Mikayla. The fight that their nieces Peyton and Melody had been in still weighed heavily on Miley's conscience, and she tried to remain hopeful that the hostilities between Hannah and Mikayla could be defused. Lilly wasn't so sure, but she was willing to work to fulfill Miley's hope for a peaceful resolution.

"_Lilly? You there?"_

"Yeah, I'm here. Sure, I think I could do lunch. You have a restaurant in mind, or you just want to meet up somewhere?"

"Just come by my house. It's 1138 Tiger Lily Lane. You can Google Map it for directions; I suck at giving them anyway."

Lilly couldn't help but grin slightly. "Alright. What time you want me to be there?"

"Twelve. I mean, if that works for you too."

Lilly shook her head. Part of her brain couldn't believe that Mikayla was being not only nice but also considerate, simply because she had been the exact opposite for years. Still, she was trying. "That works for me. I can't stay too long because Miley and I have plans for tonight, but I can find time to do lunch."

"Great. See you at twelve, then!"

As the connection ended, Lilly looked at her phone for a few seconds before slipping it back into her pocket and setting off at a brisk walk back to the house. She was only a few hundred yards away, and in just a few minutes she was dropping her shoes off on the back deck. She opened the door, smiling when she saw Miley bustling around in the kitchen. "Hey, beautiful!" Lilly called out, only to be answered with a delighted cry from the playpen beside the couch. "Hey, baby girl!" she said happily, bending down as she waved to Brooke, her bright blue eyes locked onto her mother with burning intensity.

"She's been lookin' for you," said Miley as she walked over to her wife. She ran her hands through her thick, chestnut-brown curls as she reached Lilly, who instantly wrapped her arms around Miley's shoulders, bare in the tank top she was wearing this morning.

"Anybody else been looking for me?" asked Lilly teasingly, her lips just inches away from Miley's own.

"I might have been," whispered Miley as she leaned forward, pressing her lips against Lilly's as her eyes automatically closed. They kissed for several seconds, finally pulling apart just in time to hear a gurgling laugh from Brooke.

Lilly gave Miley another quick kiss, then she patted her wife on the butt through her thin fleece shorts as she stepped over to the playpen. She leaned over, carefully lifting her baby daughter up and out of the brightly colored playpen and settling her on her shoulder. "Did you miss your mommy, little girl?" she whispered warmly to Brooke, who made a happy sucking noise as she bobbed her head against Lilly's shoulder. "Oooh, don't bonk your little head, jellybean!" Lilly said, her voice soft as she steadied their daughter's head.

"Got a head like yours," said Miley as she walked back over to the kitchen to finish unloading the dishwasher. "Hard as a sack a' anvils."

"And we love her for it!" Lilly said in a voice that tried to sound scolding but fell rather short. "Her's the best baby ever," Lilly said with a baby voice, getting a smile from Brooke. "Oh, and speaking of babies, Mikayla asked me to have lunch with her today."

Miley stood up from where she had been bending over the dishwasher. "Are you serious?" she asked, slack-jawed.

Lilly nodded. "Yeah, I am. I think she really is looking for a friend, Miley. I think she needs one, too."

"Well, I'm with you there, but who says that friend _has_ to be you?" asked Miley, apprehension oozing from not only her facial expression but also her body language. Now that Mikayla seemed eager to forge a friendship with Lilly, Miley herself was beginning to have second thoughts. It wasn't due to any jealousy because Miley trusted Lilly entirely, but instead this concern stemmed from a growing worry about Mikayla and her penchant for drama.

Lilly walked over to the kitchen, putting her free arm around Miley as she pulled Brooke's other mother into a hug with them. "You want all this feud stuff to be over, don't you honey?" she asked gently. After a brief pause, Miley nodded twice. "Okay," Lilly said with a warm smile for her best friend. "I do too. And I think this might be the best way to make it happen. What was that your dad told you, sometimes the best solution is one where everybody wins something?"

Miley grinned. "That was a while ago, baby. Good memory."

"Some things just sort of stick around up there," Lilly said teasingly. "Contrary to popular belief, blondes aren't all dumb."

"No, they're not," Miley agreed as she gave first Lilly a kiss, then Brooke. "Why don't you get in the shower? I'll play with Lilly Junior here while you get clean."

Lilly grinned. "You got yourself a deal, superstar."

Just over three hours later, Lilly pulled up to a imposing wrought-iron gate in her obsidian Tesla Roadster. She rolled down her window to hit the Intercom button, but before she could do so the gate began to swing open with a soft hum. She smiled and left the window down as she waited for the gate to open enough to drive inside, then she pressed the accelerator to send her car silently shooting up the inclined driveway.

As Lilly parked her Roadster in the paved semicircle in front of the mansion, she shook her head at how right she had been in her guess at how Mikayla's home would look. _Big, expensive, flashy, and not an ounce of warmth anywhere_. She got out of the car, the soft soles of her sneakers squeaking slightly on the wet tile walkway leading up to the house. As she reached the door and pressed the doorbell, she turned and took another look around at the grounds around the mansion. It wasn't the biggest mansion she had seen, but it was at least as big as Ashley's home, maybe bigger. It was tough to tell without seeing the back of the house and how far back Mikayla's yard stretched behind the house.

As the door opened, Lilly spun around, surprised to see Mikayla at the door. "Oh," she said rather dumbly, smacking her forehead lightly as she shook her head and smiled. "Sorry. That was a brilliant hello, huh?"

Mikayla smiled in return, and while the expression still seemed somewhat foreign to the younger woman's face, it seemed to rest more comfortably than it had just a few days ago. "It's okay," Mikayla said. "The place is pretty big, I know. If you want I'll show you around after lunch."

At the sound of the L-word, Lilly's stomach rumbled knowingly. "Lunch, you said?" she asked with a grin. "Miley'll tell you that my stomach seems to have a mind of its own."

"Then let's get started," said Mikayla as she moved out of the door, letting Lilly step inside. "I figured we'd just eat here if that's okay with you. I had my chef make two or three different things for us. Figured you'd like at least one of them."

"_At least _being the words to remember," Lilly said smartly as she followed Mikayla down the long hallway.

Conversation over lunch was brief and cursory, as Lilly's hunger demanded most of her attention. It had been a while since she had eaten—_food, that is,_ she thought as a sly grin slid across her lips—and the meal that Mikayla's chef had fixed for them really was outstanding. As Lilly dropped her fork on her again-empty plate and leaned back, she sighed happily as she looked over at her hostess. "That was pretty darn good, Mikayla," she said pleasantly. "Thanks for having me over."

"Glad you liked it," the dark-haired woman replied. "Alejandra doesn't get to pull out the stops too often, so she's probably happy to have someone enjoy her cooking as much as you did."

"You've got to give me her number," Lilly mumbled happily. "Maybe I could have her come out and fix some stuff for Miley and me every now and then."

"Yeah, just remember she's not cheap. You probably want to check her prices first. But if you can afford it, her cooking's sure as hell worth it."

Internally Lilly began to fume at Mikayla's repeated insinuations that she was much wealthier than Lilly and Miley were. _Bitch, I know that my woman's worth ten times what you are. Heck, after "Above and Beyond" hitting $200 million domestic, I'm probably close to you myself._ With great effort she managed to tamp down her ire and force a smile on her face, but then a thought struck her that made that smile genuine. _But the wealth that Miley and I really have isn't counted in dollars, and you're flat broke in that department._ "I think we might be able to swing it for a special occasion," she said with a calm voice, determined not to let Hannah's immature would-be rival get under her skin this time.

Things were quiet for several heartbeats, then Mikayla looked at Lilly and said, "There's something that I've been needing to talk to someone about for a long time, Lilly. Several somethings, actually."

Lilly's fork paused over the plate. She slowly looked up and saw Mikayla gazing at her with eyes that ached with yearning, a need so deep and intense that tears nearly sprang to Lilly's eyes. She wasn't sure exactly how to respond to that, so she stayed quiet and continue to hold Mikayla's gaze neutrally.

After three or four seconds, Mikayla blinked and looked away. "I'm not ready to talk about them just yet. Not since Kasey..." She smiled sadly as she looked back across the table at Lilly. "Not since Kasey died. But I think that when I _am_ ready to talk about them, Lilly, you might just be the one I'll talk to."

It surprised Lilly slightly when she heard herself say, without the least bit of sarcasm, "That's what friends are for, Mikayla. We're there when we're needed."

As Miley heard the door close downstairs, she smiled to herself as she began washing Brooke in her baby bath chair. She had felt the warmth in her heart that meant Lilly was close several minutes ago, so hearing the door open and close was no surprise. Just a minute later, that warmth intensified sharply, making Miley's smile become a full grin. "Have a good lunch?" she asked without taking her eyes off their daughter, who was thoroughly enjoying her evening bath if her happy laughter was any indication.

"It was bearable," Lilly sighed as she sat down on the floor beside the bathtub, scooting close enough to her wife for their legs to touch. "The food was actually pretty good, though."

"She didn't cook it herself, did she?"

Lilly laughed. "You really need to ask that question?"

Miley shook her head briefly. "Nah, not really. Just wanted to remind myself of another way you're better than she is."

"Did it work?" asked Lilly as her strong hands began to slowly knead Miley's shoulders.

"Mmm, you bet it did," Miley whispered out as she leaned her head back slightly, soaking in the heavenly feel of Lilly's loving fingers on her skin. "I still think this'll turn out to be a waste of your time."

Lilly slid her left hand up Miley's shirt, lovingly caressing her wife's bare breast. "Oh, I'm pretty sure I'll get something I like out of this," she murmured into Miley's ear, drawing a giggle from her best friend.

"Not this, baby," Miley said with a smile as she resumed washing their daughter with a soft pink washcloth, "I can guarantee what you're doin' right now is most definitely _not_ a waste of your time. I was talkin' about you tryin' to be Mikayla's friend."

Lilly kissed Miley's neck once, twice as she continued to fan her wife's desire. "She's so messed up, Miles. I mean, it's not funny how much she keeps bottled up inside. I hope she's seeing a therapist or a psychiatrist or something."

"Well, she has backed off the attacks on us lately," said Miley as she unbuckled the safety strap holding Brooke securely in her bath seat. "I guess that's a good sign." She carefully picked their daughter up as Lilly slid her hand out of her shirt. "You mind to grab me a towel, please?"

Lilly smiled; she was already retrieving one of Brooke's soft towels from the shelf before Miley even asked. She turned around and unfolded the towel, holding it up as Miley carefully handed Brooke to her other mommy. Lilly wrapped the baby up in the warm towel, then she and Miley stepped into their bedroom, where Lilly laid Brooke on the bed so she could gently dry her off. The baby laughed as her mother toweled her dry, tickling her at several points along the way.

"She looks like you when she laughs," Lilly said to Miley, who was pulling a pair of baby pajamas out of the dresser. "It makes her look even cuter."

Miley gave Lilly a kiss on the cheek as she began tugging the pajamas on their daughter. "Meaner, maybe," Miley said with a teasing grin. "Not sure about cuter. That's more you than me."

Lilly stepped up behind Miley and hugged her, resting her lips on the back on Miley's neck. "You know what, country girl?" she asked softly.

Miley grinned as she snapped the first button on Brooke's pajamas. The littlest Truscott was yawning, and her eyes were already starting to flutter closed. "What, surfer girl?" she replied over her shoulder.

Lilly squeezed Miley just a bit tighter as she said, "I think I just might keep you," punctuating her sentence with a happy sigh.

**Author's Afterword:** My deepest apologies for this chapter taking forever. I promise I'm still writing, it's just hard finding time to work out chapters and get them typed. I'll keep doing my best, because there are still a few more stories to go. I love all of you, and thank you again for spending time with Miley and Lilly! They love all of you too!

Jo


	27. Chapter 27: Collision Course

**Author's Note:** I realized something while I was laboring over this chapter: If we let the idea of Liley wither and fade, then we've let all those who have tried to stifle the connection between Miley and Lilly win. I'm already ticked that some heartless, loveless people at corporate Disney have trashed Hannah Montana's television show; no way in Hell am I letting the happiness, the positivity, the sheer _rightness_ of Miley's and Lilly's love for each other fade away peacefully. Maybe the fourth and final season of _HM_ can bring back the Miley and Lilly we've all grown to love. Maybe.

I hope everyone can forgive me for the terrible delay between this chapter and the previous one. Suffice it to say that life has gotten hectic, and that I'll try to do my best with updates. However, I will _absolutely_ finish all the stories in this series, whether it turns out to be seven or nine. Most likely nine. It might take a few years, but hey, we're halfway there since this story is the fifth!

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist or publication mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo K.

Chapter 27: Collision Course

_We gotta hold on, ready or not_

_You live for the fight when that's all that you've got_

_-_-Bon Jovi, "Livin' on a Prayer"

The sudden chill against the back of her neck made Miley shriek as she jumped to her feet, nearly knocking her mischievous wife backward. She grabbed the tingling skin just below her hair as she spun around, shivering slightly as her blue eyes settled on Lilly's twinkling eyes of the same color. "Yes?" she said with a fairly irritated voice, but her stern look was already threatening to yield to happy laughter. _Grrr. It's SO hard to stay mad at her when she's so darn cute._

Lilly giggled, eliciting a matching noise from their daughter Brooke. The baby girl was nestled in the crook of Lilly's left arm; Lilly had spun away when Miley had jerked to her feet to keep her wife from bumping her arm. "Oh, just making sure you were still breathing," Lilly said casually, tossing the frozen bag of vegetables into the shopping cart.

"By stickin' a bag of frozen veggies against the back of my neck while I was down here checkin' the price on these Poptarts?" Miley growled, making Brooke wiggle her hands and fingers excitedly at the sound of her other mother's deep voice.

Lilly nodded. "Yup. Worked, too. See? You're breathing."

Miley narrowed her eyes, eying Lilly warily. "You better watch yourself, Lilly Truscott. There might be a bag a' frozen veggies with your name on it somewhere."

Lilly leaned forward, lightly grasping Miley's upper left arm with her free right hand as she leaned in and kissed her wife for several seconds. "Does that make it better, my sweet Miley?" she whispered against Miley's cheek.

Miley mutely nodded for a few seconds until she could catch her breath, finally saying, "It's a little better."

Lilly looked into Miley's bright blue eyes, nearly gray in the harsh florescent lighting of the supermarket. "Just a little?" she asked teasingly. She liked where this game was going.

Miley nodded again, and now a grin was creeping across her face. "Maybe a little more would make it even better."

Lilly lifted an eyebrow, her own version of the Stewart eyebrow now impeccable after years of practice. "Just a little more, huh?" she said, stepping closer to her wife again. Brooke burbled as her mommies kissed again, just as her curious little fingers instinctively grasped the soft, silky things that brushed across her face.

"_OW!_ She's got my hair, Lilly!"

"Oooh, shoot!" Lilly mumbled, pulling her lips away but staying close to Miley as she tried to get Brooke to release her vice-like grip on her momma's dark brown hair. "You love your momma's hair, don't you baby girl?" she cooed to her daughter as she carefully moved Brooke's tiny fingers, finally freeing Miley's hair from their daughter's grasp. "It's okay. Your mommy loves your momma's hair, too. Even if I don't pull on it quite that hard."

As she gingerly touched her sore scalp, Miley caught Lilly's gaze. "You were tuggin' on it pretty hard this weekend, if I'm rememberin' correctly," she said with a devilish smile on her face.

"And you sure as heck seemed to like it," Lilly replied, a slight blush tinging her cheeks with a rosy tint.

"You bet your cute rear end I liked it. It's sooo hot when you pull on my hair like that when you're behind me, Lilly Bear."

"Miles!" Lilly hissed in a loud whisper. "Let's not give everybody else in the grocery store the play-by-play on our making love, okay?"

"But I bet they'd like to know how cute your mouth is when you—"

"No, I don't think they would!" Lilly reached into the cart. "Do I have to get the frozen carrots back out, or will you behave, Miley Truscott?"

Miley smiled as she stepped behind the cart, pushing it into motion once again. "I think I can behave until we get home," she said teasingly.

"Well, the way Brooke's been about not taking her naps this last month, you better keep those hormones under control." But the increase in her heart rate reflected how badly Lilly was missing their amorous interludes. "It's not fair when you get me turned on and then we have to wait until bedtime."

Miley batted her long eyelashes briefly before she said, "I'm not tryin' to tease you, honey. And believe me, I'm needin' you just as much as you're needin' me." The soft trilling of Miley's phone drew her attention away from Lilly's sapphire blue eyes. She glanced at the caller ID, then she looked up and said, "Jen."

Lilly smoothly switched places with Miley, taking over the duty of pushing the cart and tickling Brooke while Miley answered the phone. "Hey Jen," Miley said cheerily. "How's stuff goin' at the office today?"

"_Oh, it's pretty quiet. Other than the fact that Hannah and Lola Montana are supposed to be down here at DreamWorld to talk to their really fucking incredible manager about some of the latest shit that's going on with their piddly-ass careers."_

"Sweet niblets," Miley hissed through clenched teeth. "That's_ today?"_

"What?" asked Lilly as she dropped a box of Triscuits into the cart. "What's today?"

"Our meeting with Jen."

"_Your meeting with Jen. Who, by the way, has a couple of licensing offers that she needs to run by you. So do you think you could find an itty bit of time for your poor manager, who works her ass off day and—"_

Miley looked at Lilly and rolled her eyes briefly. "She's on an ego trip again," she said, loud enough for Jen to her as well.

"_Hmph. Well, I suppose we could push it back to tomorrow if we have to."_

"Hey!" Miley said as a thought occurred to her. "Why don't you meet us for dinner tonight?"

Lilly's eyes widened slightly as she considered how fun that might be. "Oh, that's a kick-ass idea, Miles! I bet Oliver and Ashley haven't seen her since high school!"

"I know," Miley said with a smile for her best friend before turning her attention back to her cell phone. "Okay Jen, let's go over that stuff at dinner tonight. You want to bring Lee along?"

"_To talk business about Hannah and Lola? Uh uh. No way in hell. I do take my client's private lives quite seriously, thanks."_

"Um, yeah, forgot about that. That he doesn't know, I mean."

"_It's okay. Even if you told me to let him in on things, I'd still keep it a secret. He talks in his sleep."_

"Okay. Our reservations are at six-thirty at Moonshadows Malibu. You know where that is?"

"_Yeah, sure do. I'll be there."_

"Great. We'll call 'em and make sure they add you to the table. And Jen?"

"_Yeah?"_

"Thanks for doin' such a great job at what you do. Lilly and I are very lucky to have someone as good as you takin' care of us."

"_Well, I'm pretty damn lucky to work for two amazing bosses myself. But... thanks. Thanks for... well, everything." _

There was a touch of sentiment in Jen's voice, an inflection that most listeners would have missed but unmistakable to someone who spoke with Jen Kittrell on nearly a daily basis. Hearing it made Miley realize how much all three of them had grown up over the last few years. "You're welcome, Jen. And you need to make sure to thank my wife for tracking you down and hiring you."

"_You mean you're not going to tell her everything I just said as soon as you hang up the phone?"_

Miley grinned. Jen knew her and Lilly quite well at this point, too. "Smarty," she said teasingly. "But yeah, of course I will."

"_Good. That's how you two work best. Together. I'll see you tonight."_

As Jen closed the connection, Miley thought about that last observation from her manager. She had said it simply, but it was undeniably true. Sure, there had been times when one of them had to take care of something without the other, but those occasions were rare. As Miley slipped the cell phone back into her purse, she looked beside her, gazing at the heartwarming sight of Lilly tickling and playing with their daughter Brooke while Brooke laughed loudly. _ I couldn't imagine living without her. Without either of them, really, but while losing Brooke would be devastating, Lilly would be there to help me through it. But losing Lilly means I lose half of my heart, half of my soul._

As Miley tried to shift her thoughts away from such sad considerations, she felt strong fingers gently wrap around her upper right arm.

"Hey," said Lilly's lilting voice, concern suffused through that single syllable. "Everything okay?"

Miley nodded, willing the tears not to start. "Yeah. Was just thinking." Her voice trailed off as she found herself hesitant to even voice such terrible things.

"Ah," said Lilly. She stepped up behind Miley and wrapped her arms around her wife's waist, hugging her tightly as she buried her face in Miley's hair. "You're not ever going to lose me, you know," she murmured against the back of Miley's neck, lips brushing warmly across Miley's tingling skin.

Miley closed her eyes as she reached out and gently grasped Brooke's leg. "I don't think I could pull it together if I did, Lilly," she breathed, words barely audible.

"Yeah, you could, Miles. For two reasons."

By now they were at the register, and unloading their buggy, gathering the bags of groceries, paying and wrangling a curious baby managed to occupy both young mothers' attention. It wasn't until they were wheeling the shopping cart full of grocery bags and a brightly colored baby carrier out to their Tesla Sedan that Miley finally asked, "What are they?"

Lilly looked over at Miley as she tapped in the code to unlock the trunk of their car. "Well, the first reason is the big no-brainer."

"That better not be me you're callin' a no-brainer, blondie," Miley replied, winking at her wife's bemused grin.

As Lilly began placing the bags in the trunk, she said, "Miley, you most certainly have a brain. There are just some times when you don't use it."

"Ha ha," Miley said flatly as she unlatched the baby carrier from the shopping cart and carried it to the side of the car. Lilly stepped over and opened the back door, holding it and smiling as Miley leaned forward and brushed against her as she wiggled the baby carrier into its holder, already buckled in securely. As Miley scooted back and stood up, her elbow slowly brushed against Lilly's left breast. "Felt that," Lilly said quietly, smiling as she caught Miley's slight grin.

"Good. I wanted you to feel it," Miley said. "I'll get the rest of the bags and take the cart; you get the car started. It's pretty dang hot today."

As Miley fell into the passenger seat, she sighed happily as she felt the cool air drift across her bare neck and collerbones. "So I'm guessin' that the first reason is that I'd have to take care of Brooke if anything ever happened to you."

Lilly turned to look at Miley before she shifted the car into Reverse. "You'd guess right. I told you that you were smart." She patted Miley's hand, letting the touch shift smoothly into their hands grasping each other tightly.

"So what's the second reason?" Miley asked, to curious to resist.

Lilly leaned slightly forward, and even though she spoke softly it was as if her words shot directly into Miley's brain. "Because you know that I'll be right there with you, every minute, every day, every year, until you can finally hold me again, Miley Truscott. No matter how long it takes."

Miley felt her eyes start to sting as she leaned forward and kissed her best friend, letting the kiss become deeper and more intense as the seconds passed around the two girls who shared one heart and one soul.

As Mikayla hurried out of her dance studio, she found herself wanting to jump through her cell phone and strangle the woman on the other end of the conversation she was mired in at the moment. "No, Margot, I_ told_ you! Fuck!" She stopped, not even caring about the handful of paparazzi who had camped out across the street while they waited on her to emerge from her latest dance session. "I've got to be in Burbank by five for _American Gladiators_ tomorrow! Have you forgotten that some moron thought that it'd be a good idea to do the show live rather than prerecorded?"

"_Do NOT take that tone with me, young lady!"_

"What kind of tone am I supposed to take with you, then? Huh? You want me to be more polite or something?" She took the phone away from her ear, holding the mouthpiece directly in front of her mouth as she screamed, "Then_ FUCK YOU!!!"_ She shook her head, then put the phone back up to her ear. "Jesus, Margot! You're my manager, for Christ's sake! Isn't it your job to be looking out for me when some shit like this happens?"

"_I told you, Mikayla, they don't have any kind of proof! They're just tossing out a handful of lies and half-truths, waiting to see if you freak out or anything, like you are right now!"_

That was probably true. As much as Mikayla hated the woman, Margot tended to cover all the bases when she was trying to make dirt disappear.

"_They're a shitty little webzine trying to drive up the hit count, and it's working. You know, when you stop giving these people the dramatic stories, they start trying to make their own. That's what you get for letting your feud with Montana cool off."_

Bitch. "Enough, Margot. I still hate the bitch, I'm just trying to... have a bit more class."

"_Tell me how that's going for you after a few more months of her last album, which she released months before yours, by the way, beating your ass on the sales charts."_

Grrrrrr. Time to change the subject. "Oh, you think you could tell your creepy brother to stay the fuck away from me again?" Mikayla said coolly.

On the other end of the line, Margot sighed audibly. _"God, what did he do to you this time? And you know that you're only encouraging him, dressing like a high school slut most of the time."_

Mikayla grinned, glad that Margot couldn't see her face. "He keeps texting me! We've changed my phone number twice now, and he keeps getting it somehow!" _Maybe because I give it to him when no one's looking_. "He needs to stop hounding me, Margot, seriously. It's creeping me the hell out."

"_I thought you'd screw anything with a dick, myself."_

"Thanks, Margot. You know all about being a class act, huh? With the whole blackmail angle you're working on me?"

"_Shut up, Mikayla. Not another word. And I'll tell Lonnie to stop coming onto you."_

"That would be nice," Mikayla said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. She hung up abruptly. She double-checked her phone once again to make sure that the texts she had sent to Lonnie had been deleted. She couldn't risk having this blow up in her face, not when she truly had no other options left if she wanted to salvage her career.

Later that night, after Brooke was sound asleep and safely tucked away in her crib, Lilly slid into the bed beside her wife and best friend. The cool thrill of the slick sheets sent a tingle across her body, causing a shiver that Miley most definitely noticed. She restrained herself as Lilly silently said her prayers, limiting herself to just hugging her wife until Lilly's eyes opened, revealing sparkling blue irises that fixed on Miley immediately.

"You already said your prayers, I suppose?" Lilly said softly.

"Yup. While you were still brushin' your teeth. You take a long time doin' that, you know."

Lilly laid back, running her fingers through her blonde hair. "Just want to keep my smile beautiful for you, Miles."

"Yeah. More like you don't want to go to the dentist for another year or two."

"Hey, I can't help it if I had some really traumatizing experiences with dentists as a kid!" Lilly rolled over and ran her fingers across Miley's bare ribs, giggling lightly as her wife trembled slightly at the intimate contact. "And who was it that kept going to that pediatric dentist until she was twenty, hmmm?"

"And who was it that threatened _me_ with no sex until I went to a dentist's office that didn't have smiley animals painted on the walls?"

The two young women stared into each other's eyes for several seconds before finally dissolving into sputtering laughter.

"Oh my gosh!" said Lilly as she wiped her slobbering mouth with her hand. She smiled, taking a moment to compose herself before she reached over and gently ran her hand across Miley's left cheek. "Miley Truscott, I love you with all of my heart, do you know that?" she asked softly, staring into Miley's eyes as she spoke.

Instead of a verbal reply, Miley leaned forward and tenderly kissed her best friend, letting their lips part slowly as they breathed deeper into the kiss, hands beginning to roam across warm skin far below. As they shifted into a closer position more suited for intimacy, Miley opened her eyes. "Yeah, I know," she said teasingly. "Just like I know you never would've held out on me."

Lilly grinned guiltily. "Yeah, I never would've stood a chance, would I?"

"Nope." Then words were unneeded as the two of them pressed against each other, need and desire mixing into expression of a love as pure and natural as a spring rain.

As the late afternoon sun set in the California sky the next day, Miley shifted uncomfortably in the back of the limousine carrying them through Los Angeles. She had been in more limousines than she could remember, but never before had she felt as nervous as she did now. Before her jangling nerves could make her start biting her nails, she felt a soothing touch on her back.

"Hannah, honey, don't be so nervous. Please." Lilly leaned in and rested her pink-tressed head on Miley's shoulder. "It's just a television show, remember?"

Miley sighed. "No, Lola, it's more than that. It's Mikayla trying something else to try and make me look bad. That's all she's done ever since she's been back, and I'm ready for it to stop."

Internally Lilly felt torn, but only to a small degree. She truly did think that Mikayla was ready to become a better person, and she still felt that she needed to encourage that progress. But when helping Mikayla came into conflict with helping Miley, well, then Mikayla was on her own. "Honey, all you have to do is go out there and show her that you're not scared of her or her stupid challenges. I mean, you've stomped her on every one of them so far. Who's to say that you're not gonna beat her this time, too?"

The look of disbelief in Miley's eyes couldn't have been more striking. "Uh, hello? Zero natural athletic potential, here?" she said, pointing her thumbs at her own chest.

"That's why you've been working out and training for the last two months, Hannah, remember?" Lily kept her smile warm and loving as she carefully ran her fingers through Hannah's long blonde hair, careful as always not to dislodge the startlingly lifelike wig. Made from real hair, the wig would get wet in a quite natural way when in the water; the helmet required for all competitors on _American Gladiators_ would keep it firmly in place no matter what physical challenges Miley would face. Lilly and Miley had convinced themselves of that by conducting their own tests at home previously.

Miley looked away from Lilly, back out the darkened side window of the limousine at the line of fans, cameramen and reporters assembled around them and across the street. She shivered silently as her nerves jangled deep inside; suddenly she felt warm fingers slip beneath her own, and Miley's hand was curling around those familiar digits before her mind could ever register the signal sent by the nerves in her hand. Miley turned and looked into Lilly's eyes, awed by the love and devotion that were always present in those beautiful sapphire eyes. "As long as I've got you with me, sweetheart, I can deal with anything," she said as she tenderly pulled Lilly's head in for a kiss.

Inside the Coliseum that would be hosting the latest version of _American Gladiators_, Mikayla tossed her workout bag into the large open locker with her name stenciled above it, gold stars flanking the letters on each side. "Nice touch," she muttered as she put her hands on her hips and turned around, taking in the cavernous locker room.

She had already been given her outfit for tonight's show, an outfit that managed to be fairly revealing while still offering some degree of protection to her body. She would be wearing her own athletic shoes and underwear, but the show provided everything else for her to wear during the competition. Mikayla held up the tight-fitting red athletic shorts, shaking them out once. A matching sports bra was in the bag she had just tossed into the locker, several of them, in fact. It seems that the show didn't want to offend anyone by possibly guessing the incorrect size for any article of clothing, so they had given Mikayla multiple sizes for everything, allowing her to choose what fit her best. One of the female production crew had told the singer that someone would inspect her choice of sizes before the show began, to ensure that she was not only comfortable and adequately protected but also unlikely to suffer any wardrobe mishaps.

"Oh, darn. You haven't started changing yet."

Mikayla whirled around, dropping the shorts onto the carpeted floor of the locker room. "Goddamn it, Margot!" she spit out angrily. "What the hell are you doing, trying to sneak a peek at me?" Thinking about Margot getting cheap thrills by seeing her changing clothes always made Mikayla uneasy, but after the events of the last few weeks it made her positively nauseous. It was hard enough for Mikayla to admit that her relationship with Kasey had been veering toward more than just friendship before her best friend's death, and that difficulty had been augmented by the sexual games she had playing with Margot's brother Lonnie. Such acts, while sickening to Mikayla, were a necessary part of her pyrrhic plan against Margot and her brother, and she couldn't abandon them prematurely. But she sure as hell didn't have to sit here and let Margot leer at her while she changed. "Get the fuck out, Margot. Now."

Margot raised her hands in a conciliatory manner. "Hey, I was just coming in here to wish you good luck, and to tell you that Montana just got here."

"Both of them?" Mikayla asked as she picked up the sports bra and inspected it, checking the size printed inside the article of clothing.

Margot snorted once, another sound that Mikayla hated. "Of course. Do they ever do anything alone?"

Mikayla glanced up at Margot quickly, an idea having just occurred to her. "Turn around," she said to the older woman, relishing the look of surprise on her manager's face. "I said, turn around. You don't expect me to change with you watching, do you, Margot?"

Margot slowly turned around, facing the locker room door as Mikayla unzipped her pants. _Wow, I think she's sweating. Maybe I should have teased her like this a long time ago._ She tossed her shirt on the padded bench beside her, unhooking her bra and tossing it aside as well.

"It's, uh, just that you normally ask me to, um, leave when you change," Margot stammered as Mikayla pulled the red sports bra over her head, sliding it carefully into place. It fit snugly, but that was exactly what Mikayla was wanting. She had been continuing her workouts and pushing herself harder than ever in preparation for this night.

"They were laughing at you, you know."

Mikayla froze with the form-fitting spandex shorts halfway up her legs. "Who was laughing at me?" she asked hesitantly.

"Montana and her bitch."

Mikayla pulled the shorts all the way up, running her finger around the waist band and legs to get the position just right. "Oh yeah?" she tried to ask casually, but inside she was seething. _Fuck them and their self-righteous __attitude._ Mikayla might have tried to cool off their battle in the media, but there was no way in hell that she'd let anyone laugh at her. She'd been through too much, sacrificed too much to let Hannah Montana look down her nose at her.

"Remember why you wanted to do this in the first place," Margot said, her back still turned as Mikayla stood dangerously still.

_So I could hurt her_, Mikayla thought. _Not just beat her, but really, physically hurt her._

But was that really what she wanted now? Wasn't she trying to be better than this? All of Mikayla's talking with Lilly made her face the ugly truth that Kasey might not have liked the woman Mikayla had become, and going into tonight's competition with the ulterior motive of crippling Hannah Montana had to be high on the list of Shitty Things To Do.

"She's made you look like a fool time and time again, Mikayla."

As Mikayla's eyes focused on her manager, she noted that Margot had turned around and was looking straight at her. A cold shiver passed through Mikayla's body, and she was suddenly glad that even if her emotions had been laid bare, at least her body was covered. She glared at her manager and coolly said, "I think that you and I both had something to do with making me look like a fool, too."

Margot smiled a smile utterly devoid of warmth, then she calmly said, "Whether that's true or not, what matters right now is that you're the number two singer in America, with the number two album, too. And the bitch who's keeping you from number one for both of those is right out there tonight, just waiting for you to find a way to screw up again so she can have another good laugh at your expense."

Mikayla realized she was clenching her fists tightly; with conscious effort she managed to straighten her fingers back to a normal position. "And how do I know that you're not lying to me? The last time I really talked with her, she was actually pretty nice to me and—" Her mouth snapped shut as she realized how close she was to revealing not just how important Esme was to her but also the girl's very existence. If Margot found out about that... "—And she seemed to be sincere about it."

"Please tell me you're not falling for that crap that her P.R. crew puts out there," Margot said with a disdainful snort. She stepped forward and roughly grabbed Mikayla's shoulders, shaking the singer once as she stared into her eyes. "Mikayla, you and I have put years of blood, sweat and tears into making you the biggest singer in the world, and tonight is your chance to go out there and make that happen. Whatever it takes! That's what you always used to say, right?"

Mikayla dumbly nodded, her mind reeling.

"Well, _tonight_ is that fucking whatever, you hear me?" Margot said loudly, staring into Mikayla's eyes. "You hear me?!"

The cheers of the crowd were loud enough to be heard through the concrete walls of the locker room, making the fine hairs at the top of her neck stand as Mikayla considered what lay before her this evening.

Several hallways apart, Lilly helped Miley arrange Hannah's blonde hair beneath the deeply vented helmet. Miley had elected to pull Hannah's hair back into a ponytail tonight; Lilly had briefly pouted in an attempt to persuade her to go for the dual pigtails look, but Miley insisted that she wanted a more mature look. She had also promised to wear her own dark brown hair in pigtails when they went to bed tonight, much to Lilly's delight.

"Okay, I think it's pretty secure," Lilly said as she gazed at Miley's face while she used her wife's helmet to tug her head lightly in various directions. "You should be good to go, baby."

Miley grinned bashfully, a gesture out of character for Hannah Montana. She looked down at her body, clad in blue from her helmet to her new Asics shoes. The spandex sports bra and shorts hugged her body tightly, setting the exposed skin of her shoulders, abdomen, legs and most of her back at sharp contrast with the azure fabric. "I look okay?" she asked her best friend, taking a long look at herself in the mirror as she turned back and forth.

"No," said Lilly, bringing Miley to a sudden stop.

"No?" asked a confused Miley, staring at Lilly's shining eyes in the full length mirror.

Lilly slowly shook her head. "No," she repeated. "You look so much better than okay that I can't put into words how sexy you are right now."

Miley hugged Lilly tightly, closing her eyes and smiling as she took in the warmth, the smell, the acceptance of Lilly's embrace. "If our baby was here right now, it'd be perfect," she said quietly.

"Yeah, but you know there's no way I'd be able to hang onto her, hon, not when I was watching you. I'd be too nervous."

"I know," Miley said, not even a hint of condescension or disagreement in her voice. They had decided several weeks ago that it would be better for Brooke to stay with a sitter while Miley competed, and Ashley and Oliver had been all but fallen over themselves to watch their friends' adorable little daughter for the evening.

A knock on the locker room door drew the girls' attention, but they didn't break their embrace as the door slowly opened a few seconds later. "Mrs. Montana?" a soft voice asked hesitantly.

"Come on in," Miley answered, lifting her head off of Lilly's shoulder to look at their guest.

The young woman who entered the room saw the two of them and didn't glance away or bat an eye. "It's time to get started, Mrs. Mon—" She stopped abruptly. "Hannah," she corrected herself with a small smile. "Sorry, you told me earlier; it's just force of habit."

"No prob," Miley said offhandedly, her own mouth smiling as Lilly placed soft kisses on her bare left shoulder, the side away from the production assistant. "Showtime, huh?"

"Oh yeah," replied the other woman. "Lola, the producers said that you can sit in the observation box with the announcer and hosts if you'd like. That way you can see all the events without having to move from set to set."

Lilly nodded. "Okay, thanks!" she said happily. She slid her hand down to hold Miley's hand, then the two of them walked out of the locker room, following the PA to the set of _American Gladiators_.

The crowd cheered lustily as the competitors were introduced, Mikayla first, then Hannah. Tonight's show was being broadcast live, so the two young women were again quietly warned to keep any comments appropriately ladylike. Miley smirked at Mikayla, knowing that the brunette was much more likely to let slip any profanity during their challenges. Mikayla responded with only a cold stare, rather than the smart comment that Miley had been expecting.

"Don't expect me to be a pushover tonight, Mikayla," Miley said softly as they walked to the start point for their first event: Joust, a straightforward one-on-one battle against one of the television show's own host of gladiators. The event pitted the gladiator and the contestant face-to-face atop two elevated platforms above a large pool of water. Each woman (and man, for the men's event) was given a sparring staff with two heavily padded ends, nearly two meters in length. While the padding ensured blows from the weapon couldn't draw blood, being struck in the face by a light jab would still rattle anyone, and a full force blow could easily knock a victim off her perch entirely, sending her falling to the water below and disqualifying her.

Miley and Lilly had done their homework by watching old episodes of the television show's two previous incarnations, and when Miley saw exactly which gladiator she and Mikayla who be facing off against in this event, she sighed and flashed a grim look across the arena to Lilly.

"_It looks like our celebrity athletes have their work cut out for them tonight!"_ said the show's announcer, his words being broadcast both in the arena and on viewers' televisions. _ "Tonight they're facing none other than... CRUSH!!"_

Lilly silently shook her head. She looked down at Miley and caught her eyes. She blew her a kiss and tried to send her wife all the luck and confidence she could, but both of them knew that Miley's chance of winning was essentially zero, and her chances of even staying on the platform long enough to score points wasn't much better. Crush's real name was Gina Carano, and her regular occupation was competing as a mixed martial arts cage fighter. With a day job like that, tossing contestants around on _Gladiators_ was just a fun distraction for her. She also held the distinction of being the only gladiator to have never been beaten in any event on _American Gladiators_. Ever. And Joust was considered one of her specialties.

The referee stepped over and checked Miley's gear. She had lost the coin toss and had to go first, and she wasn't really looking forward to it. She felt a shiver of fear run through her chest, and a tremble was quite visible as she reached out to grip the ladder ascending the first platform.

But then a soft warmth began to fill her body, emanating from her heart outward. Miley stopped with her foot on the first rung and smiled as she focused on the love from Lilly, as real as if someone had reached out and touched her on the shoulder. _I can do this. Whether I win or lose, Lilly and Brooke will love me and be proud of me. All that matters is whether or not I give it my best._ She looked up and started climbing, making her way up to the platform easily. As her head cleared the platform, she saw Crush standing atop the adjacent platform, her staff already in her hands as she stood casually, a friendly smile on her face.

Miley had gotten to meet all the gladiators over the last few days, and while many of them stayed in character and tried to be aloof or even intimidating to the celebrity contestants, Crush and a few others had been nothing but friendly and polite. _ I guess when you can snap somebody's neck with your bare hands there's no real point in _trying_ to be intimidating._

"You getting nervous yet?" Crush asked Miley as the musician bent down to pick up her own weapon. The fiberglass and foam construction made it lighter than it looked, but the weapon still weighed roughly seven or eight pounds.

"Uh, I started gettin' nervous before I ever grabbed that ladder down there," Miley said, but even as she spoke she realized that she really wasn't nervous anymore. She turned toward the open broadcast box where Lilly sat, waving and blowing her a kiss as she loudly yelled, "Love you, baby!"

Lilly stood and waved back, grinning despite her own concern for Miley's well-being. She knew that Crush wouldn't deliberately try to hurt her, but Lilly still wished there was some way that Miley could keep from getting pummeled in this event.

When the referee blew his whistle for the event to begin, Miley deliberately waited a second or two before taking a few controlled thrusts at her opponent; she knew that many contestants would often attack immediately, allowing themselves to be drawn in close before being hammered by a backhand strike. Miley was determined to at least make Crush work a bit to defeat her, and in fact she held out for nearly fifteen seconds before the experienced gladiator knocked her feet out from under her, making Miley drop her staff and disqualifying her.

The crowd cheered as the referee's whistle signaled the end of that bout. Miley warily got to her feet, keeping an eye on the smiling Crush as she stood before the two shook hands.

Lilly realized that she was holding her breath when her chest began to ache. She made herself exhale completely, then take in a deep breath of fresh air as she saw Miley get to her feet. She had tried to work with Miley on her balance the last two weeks, and it appeared the lessons had paid off. Miley had lost, but she had stayed dry. When going against Crush, that was a definite moral victory. She hurried down the steps from the broadcast platform, wanting to catch Miley before the next event.

As Miley saw Lola's bright pink hair heading her way, she quickened her own pace. The two met between the set for Joust and the next event, Pyramid.

"Hey," said Miley, only to be swept in by Lilly's arms. "Mmm," she mumbled as they kissed for long seconds. When they pulled their faces apart, both young women were smiling happily. "I didn't get wet!" squealed Miley.

"I know!" Lilly said, bouncing up and down twice. "I'm so proud of you!" She patted Miley on the back and hopped up and down twice in place before saying, "Okay, okay! Get over to your next event while you've still got the adrenaline flowing!"

"Yes ma'am!" Miley said, giving Lilly a quick peck on the lips before jogging across the cavernous stage to the set of the Pyramid challenge. As she reached the staging area, she saw that Mikayla was headed her way, her dark hair hanging in wet strings as she furiously toweled herself off.

"So how did the water feel?" asked Miley as Mikayla reached the Pyramid set.

Mikayla threw the towel down behind her, fixing Miley with an angry glare before she spoke. "You'll find out soon enough, bitch."

"You might want to watch that language when the commercial's over, you know," Miley said. "We're playing for charity tonight, remember?"

"That might be what you're playing for," Mikayla replied with a voice low and threatening, "but I've got another goal in mind tonight."

Miley turned her head to regard her rival. "Is that a threat?" she asked with a similarly low voice.

Mikayla met her gaze, then she flashed a most superficial smile. "I don't know, Miss Queen of the World. How about you tell me when the show's over?" She dropped the smile and turned to stare straight ahead, leaving Miley slightly uncomfortable.

Before Miley could ponder Mikayla's words, the two of them were being led to their start points on opposite ends of the massive stepped pyramid made out of dark gray high-density foam blocks. The objective of Pyramid was to reach the very top of the tiered structure and press the red button. Doing so would earn a contestant a full thirty points, but that required overcoming the two gladiators starting at the top of the pyramid, one for each contestant.

As the announcer's voice welcomed the television audience back to the show, Miley shook her arms and hands out, trying to not let herself think about Mikayla's words. _She's not going to try anything to hurt you, Miley. Lilly's been getting her to open up and stop being so angry, even though you didn't help things with that comment just a minute ago. Give her a chance. If Lilly can see something good in her, then you need to help her bring it out._ She looked up to see who she and Mikayla would be facing off against for this event, hoping fervently that it wouldn't be Crush.

The live crowd present tonight cheered as first Siren, then Phoenix stepped out onto the top level of the pyramid. Phoenix was slightly taller than Siren, but both women were fine athletes, each possessing power and agility sufficient to make ascending the pyramid a nightmare. _Well, nobody told you this was gonna be easy, Miley_.

As the referee blew his whistle to start the event, Miley bit down on her mouthguard and climbed up onto the first level of the pyramid. The firm foam blocks making up the structure were enclosed in a dark gray plastic cover which deformed just slightly as it bore Miley's fifty-one kilograms. Miley glanced up, only to see Siren calmly making her way down the pyramid's stepped side, stepping off the tiers one at a time. Miley took off forward, jumping up and sliding across the second tier of the pyramid, hurrying to her feet and taking several steps forward again before she quickly cut back, running away from the diagonal axis along which her and Mikayla's sides met. She glanced upward again, smiling as she saw Siren have to change direction to match her movement.

Miley ran back in the direction of her start point, only to hear as much as feel the impact of Siren landing on the tier directly above her. Out of instinct she ducked and rolled, scrambling to her feet as she now ran in the opposite direction. She took advantage of her brief lead over her pursuer to ascend another level of the pyramid, but the stamping footfalls behind her precluded any further attempt to scale another tier just yet.

As Miley ran, she saw Mikayla round the pyramid's corner ahead of her on the same level. Mikayla was running as well, dragging the fingers of her left hand across the tacky surface of the pyramid as she ran directly toward Miley. The tier was wide enough to accommodate both women, but just barely.

Miley could see Mikayla's tactic; she was trying to elude her pursuer Phoenix by making her run into either Siren or Miley; either would serve Mikayla's purpose equally well by giving her the chance to scale the rest of the pyramid and claim the thirty points for being the first to do so. However, there was no reason the same idea couldn't work for Miley, too.

Her mouth abruptly dry, Miley raced forward, taking a tiny bit of pleasure in the look of surprise on Mikayla's face as she saw the tables turned on her. But then that surprise was gone, wiped away and replaced by a grim expression in a split second before the two of them ran into each other.

Down on the ground outside the Pyramid zone, Lilly felt her heart quicken as she watched Miley duck beneath Siren's outstretched arm. "Come on, honey," she whispered to herself as her wife changed direction as she rolled, sending her moving in the opposite direction from Siren long enough to regain her footing and race back toward the center of the pyramid. Lilly's eyes flicked left long enough to register that Mikayla was running directly toward Miley's side of the pyramid on the same tier as her wife, with Phoenix two levels above her and slightly behind Mikayla as they ran in time. _Ooooh! She's bringing Phoenix right back toward you, Miles!_ "Look out, Hannah!" she yelled loudly, hoping that Miley could hear her over the cries and cheers from the crowd.

As Miley looked up, Lilly felt a thrill of excitement. Miley had seen what Mikayla was trying to do, and now she was charging toward her nemesis, Siren on the same level and closing quickly.

It was all Lilly could do not to chew her nails as she watched Miley and Mikayla race toward each other. She knew that Miley would either dive low or turn to slide past Mikayla, but all Lilly could do now was hope and pray for her wife's training to pay off.

"Move!" yelled Mikayla as she and Miley bore down upon each other. She was sure that her less athletic rival would yield; when Hannah showed no sign of doing so, Mikayla had milliseconds to react. She pulled up short, trying to spin and jump down a level but unable to do so before her thigh slammed into Hannah's left knee.

Miley's sharp cry of pain made Lilly's heart skip several breathless beats, and she was frozen as she saw her best friend reflexively reach down for her hurt knee just as Phoenix leaped off the upper tier, arms stretched out to tackle Mikayla. But now Mikayla was no longer there, and even a world-class athlete could do nothing to stop herself in midair.

Lilly's ears registered no sound as she saw Phoenix slam into a completely unsuspecting Miley, the force of both the flying tackle and gravity sending her partner head over heels down the pyramid's tiered steps, blonde hair tossing as she fell. Time seemed to crawl as Lilly began to run toward her wife, unable to tear her tear-filled eyes away from Miley's slow motion tumble which cruelly refused to stop until her small body slammed into the thick pads on the arena floor.

Lilly's eyes were burning with tears as she fell to her knees beside Miley, blood roaring in her ears as her senses began to work correctly again. She knew she was screaming as she reached down for her injured wife, but she had no idea what her mouth was saying as she checked Miley's limp body. As her trembling fingers touched Miley's neck, she gasped in both shock and relief as Miley's eyes shot open, pupils wide with shock and pain.

"Wha—AH!" Miley gasped, eyes taking a moment to register where she was through the shooting pain in her left leg. "Li—" she stammered, only to be cut off by Lilly's lips on hers.

"Shh, don't talk," Lilly whispered. "Just... just breathe, Hannah," she added, somehow managing to use Hannah's name instead of Miley's. "Just breathe, while we get you taken care of. Where's it hurting?"

"Where's it NOT hurtin'?" cried Miley, tossing briefly in pain until the pain nearly doubled with her movements. She whimpered as she fought to lie still, closing her eyes and lifting her hands to cover her face in an attempt to not be caught crying in front of everyone watching. "It hurts," she hissed out through clenched teeth, keeping her face covered.

As the medical team converged on the two young women, Lilly refused to budge from where she was. Right now the physical contact between her and Miley was all that was keeping Lilly from melting down emotionally, and she couldn't give that up just yet.

"Don't let me go. Please. No matter what."

Lilly's eyes opened long enough to focus on Miley, face red and tears streaming down her cheeks. It wasn't the pain she had heard in Miley's voice that had filled Lilly's veins with cold terror, nor was it anything like embarrassment or disappointment. It was fear. Lilly swallowed and forced the lump of ice deep in her chest even deeper as she leaned forward and ran her fingers across Miley's cheek, brushing tears aside gently. "I won't let you go," she said, voice wavering despite her attempt to keep it calm. "I swear."

Miley stared into her wife's eyes for several seconds, then she forced a smile on her face briefly. "Then I'll be okay," she mumbled before letting unconsciousness claim her for now.

Light.

Dark.

Colors. Voices. People moving her leg—OW!_ Damn it, that hurt!_

"Stop," Miley mumbled, her tongue heavy and dry, like she had fallen asleep with her mouth open and slept the entire night that way.

"She's coming around," said a voice Miley didn't recognize.

"I told you_ that!_ Is she—"

Miley smiled. THAT voice she could recognize in the middle of a hurricane.

"Can everybody give us a few minutes, please?" said that same sweet voice, and even through the fiery pain in her left knee and her head Miley could feel the love she and Lilly shared tingle throughout her body.

_Sweet, sweet Lilly. Always looking out for me. I don't think I could love her any more if I tried, because I already love her with all my heart and soul._

There was the distinctive sound of people moving and feet walking, followed by the dull thump of a heavy door closing. "Where..."

"Shh, don't try to talk yet, Miley. Not yet."

Miley blinked her eyes open, only to close them tightly as the bright light in the locker room made the entire world whirl around her. "Screw that," she managed to say fairly coherently. "Can't open my eyes, can't get the world to stop spinnin'... And you don't want me to say anything either?!"

Despite the concern in her heart for her partner, Lilly couldn't help but smile at Miley's honest humor. "You're so cute when you're all flustered, you know that, lover girl?" she said, still holding Miley's hand. True to her promise, she hadn't let it go for the last ten minutes. "Where are you hurting, hon? Well, besides your knee. It's already swelling pretty badly."

Miley tried to sit up, only to be buffeted by another wave of nausea and dizziness. "Uh, it pretty much hurts everywhere." With Lilly's help she was able to get to a seated position, but she had to lean into her wife's embrace for a minute until she was able to open her eyes. "How bad is my knee, Lola?" she finally asked, afraid to look for herself.

Lilly looked down at Miley's leg, wrapped tightly and covered with two large cold packs. "It's really swollen, and it's a shade of purple that just screams not good. They didn't see anything broken on the x-rays, but they're wanting to do an MRI on it as soon as they can." She looked at Miley's face. "You can move your neck okay?"

Miley nodded. "Yeah, my head hurts somethin' fierce, but I can feel all my fingers and toes and move everything just fine." In fact, she had been quietly testing her limbs while she and Lilly had been talking.

Relief flooded Lilly's face. "Yay," she said softly but sincerely as she carefully unsnapped the clasp on Miley's helmet. "Don't try to help me, Mi—I mean, Hannah. Sorry. I'm still a bit flustered. Seeing the woman I love take a fall like you did..." Her voice trailed off as she set the helmet down on the large training table beside the one Miley was reclining on. "Let's just say it sucked and leave it at that, 'kay?" she finished with a sad smile.

"Okay," said Miley agreeably, reaching out to hug Lilly tightly. "Ow," she said with a soft laugh, wincing as she felt a twinge of pain in her right shoulder as well. "I think there's a spot on my foot somewhere that _doesn't_ hurt, baby," she added, trying to coax a laugh out of Lilly. However, the cold feel of bile trickling into her stomach told Miley that Lilly wasn't in very much of a laughing mood. "Baby, what's wrong?" she asked Lilly, carefully running her fingers through Lola's bright pink hair so as not to dislodge the wig.

"She hurt you," Lilly said, her voice as icy as the grave. "We tried to be nice to her, and she took a cheap shot at you, Hannah! _That's_ what's wrong!" Internally, Lilly's concern for her wife's safety was now yielding to her self-castigation at ever even thinking that Mikayla would ever, _could_ ever return any compassion tendered to her. "Fucking bitch," Lilly swore softly before leaping to her feet, grabbing Miley's helmet and angrily hurling it across the locker room. The smack of plastic and foam cracking under the impact did nothing to assuage Lilly's fury; in fact, it only seemed to fan her emotional flames even higher. "Fucking BITCH!" she screamed at the wall, her voice echoing faintly inside the large room.

She and Lilly had shared everything in their lives for nearly twelve years now, but Miley wasn't sure she'd ever seen her best friend so enraged, and truthfully it scared her slightly to both see and feel through their empathic connection the boiling hatred that pulsed through Lilly at that moment. "Baby, come here, please," Miley said, keeping her voice as gentle as possible. She knew that Lilly would never lash out at her or hurt her, but there was no need in inflaming her emotions further.

Lilly stopped short of kicking the broken helmet against the wall at Miley's words. She stood still briefly, flexing her fists once, twice, three times before exhaling deeply and turning around. She walked back over to her wife and put her arms around Miley, being careful not to squeeze her too tightly. "Don't ask me not to be mad, honey. Please don't. Because there's no way in heaven or hell that I _couldn't_ be pissed off at that bitch for hurting you!"

Miley looked up into Lilly's eyes. _Screw the headache. It's worth it to see those beautiful blue eyes_. "I wouldn't ask that of you, Lola." She smiled sadly as she sighed. "I'm not gonna be able to get back out there tonight, am I?"

Lilly shook her head slowly. "No. I wouldn't let you, anyway, not after what she did to you."

Miley closed her eyes and leaned her head against Lilly's ribs. "You're too good to me, sweetheart," she said, content to give up the rest of _American Gladiators_ just to be held so lovingly, so securely.

"Hey," said Lilly, kissing the top of Hannah's blonde hair. "You're my princess, remember? I swore I'd be good to you for the rest of time, and I plan on enjoying every second of it."

Miley smiled contentedly. After basking in the warmth of Lilly's embrace for several minutes, she finally sighed and looked up at her wife before speaking again.

Back in the arena, Mikayla paced across the warmup area like a cornered panther. "What the fuck is taking them so long?" she said loudly, shooting an angry look at Margot. Her manager had come out to stay with Mikayla while the medical team finished their assessment of Hannah Montana back in the locker room. "I mean, either she can suck it up and get back out here, or she has to quit, right?"

"Well, if she quits, then what's the point of them finishing the show without someone for you to compete against?" countered Margot hotly. "So just shut up and let them take their time! For God's sake, Mikayla, every minute you're on live television your Q rating shoots up further!"

"Oh, they'd better let me finish tonight!" Mikayla said. "If I get a good enough score, I get to come back at the end of the season for the celebrity championships."

"IF you get a good enough score."

"Hey, I got thirty points back there at the pyramid, didn't I?"

Margot nodded, and a leering smile slithered across her face. "Yes, you sure did, plus you got to knock Montana into next fucking week."

Despite the conflict she was feeling within, Mikayla smiled easily as she recalled how good it had felt to see her rival go tumbling down the pyramid's steps. "Well, I just hit her in the knee," she admitted. "It was that tall gladiator who knocked her out."

"She feels pretty bad about it, too, I think," Margot said, looking over to where Phoenix was sitting with some of her fellow gladiators, shaking her head dejectedly. "Oh well. Tough for her. That's what you get when you play with the big girls, right?"

"Right!" said Mikayla, nearly shaking Margot's hand before her stomach tossed and turned at that very thought.

Margot looked over Mikayla's shoulder. "I think they're sending somebody out to tell you that you've won by forfeit," Margot said quietly. "No sign of Montana."

Mikayla turned to see one of the show's producers or assistant producers or technical producers or something or other walking toward her. "So is she coming back out or has she had enough?" Mikayla said confidently. While she was sure that her new friend Lilly wouldn't appreciate what Mikayla had done to her friend Hannah Montana, this _was_ a competition. Hannah had known the risks of getting hurt when she had signed up, and Mikayla had been just fine with letting that happen. _Not like that's the worst thing I've ever done, after all_, she thought darkly.

The middle-aged man stopped just outside of handshake range. "Hannah isn't going to be able to return to the competition, I'm afraid," he said solemnly.

_YES!_ It was all Mikayla could do not to jump up and down with joy. _Teach that bitch to try to play rough with me!_ "So can I finish the rest of the gladiator stuff, then?" she asked, only to stop short when the lights inside the studio suddenly switched off.

"What the hell's going on?" Mikayla said angrily, looking around as the audience began to cheer, obviously thinking that this was planned or something. "Forget to pay your power bills or something?"

Roughly forty yards away, a column of light snapped into existence as a spotlight—no, two spotlights stabbed through the darkness. Mikayla began to feel uneasy as the spotlights converged on a walkway opening into the other side of the arena. There was no way that Montana could be back. Her knee was badly twisted at the very least; she couldn't even stand on her own, that much was certain. And then Mikayla saw a shadow of thick black fabric swirl at the rear of that illuminated walkway, as a stage curtain parted long enough to let someone through.

Mikayla felt her own legs go weak. She closed her eyes, unwilling to look further, but she had already seen enough. Even at that distance, she easily recognized the neon pink hair beneath the helmet. "Goddammit," she swore softly.

Lilly stood in the halo of light from the twin spotlights focused on her, looking around into the darkness. She could vaguely hear the crowd cheering for her, but she wasn't in a mood to celebrate due to the circumstances that had led to Lola taking Hannah's place for the rest of the night. As the house lights came back up and the spotlights turned off, Lilly's piercing gaze settled squarely on the bitch who had hurt her sweet, precious Miley. She smiled.

No, she wasn't in a mood to celebrate tonight. Payback, however... _That_ she was in a mood for.

**Author's Afterword:** Whew! Finally, this chapter is done! It only took half of forever, and then some. Sorry again about it taking so long to get this chapter finished, but it flowed and shifted constantly while I was writing it. I wound up leaving it pretty lengthy because nowhere did it really feel just right to break it apart, and that's a big reason why it took so long to get this done and posted. Bear with me, please, because we're getting down to the last three or four chapters now, I think. Hope you've enjoyed it, and maybe I can get the next ones up sooner. Thanks for reading!

Jo


	28. Chapter 28: Pain and Consequences

**Author's Note:** Sorry for the horrible delay. I'm trying to get writing done, but it's just been brutally busy for six months now. It seems like no one else is writing either, and that makes me feel even more guilty for this being so late. Please try to forgive me.

For more information on American Gladiators and the events, Wikipedia has great write-ups on them. There are a few differences between the most recent incarnation of the show and the third version included in my story. Just like every season, some events have changed. There are new hosts and new Gladiators as well, but some old favorites are still around.

As for the intro music for this chapter, I have to say that "Who Owns My Heart" is my favorite song from Miley's new album at first listen. I already had the intro music picked for this chapter, but I changed it at the last minute after hearing that song for the first time. It just feels right to me, because Miley and Lilly are most certainly living art when it comes to their obvious love for each other.

I have no clue why this chapter keeps disappearing. I'm changing the name of the television show, just in case FFNet thinks that could be a problem, but I've received no notification of any problems or any explanations why this chapter keeps disappearing. It's getting annoying. I'll also reiterate my standard disclaimer that no infringement is intended on any person or entity named in this story, and that this story falls under the auspice of fair use.

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist or publication mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo K.

Chapter 28: Pain and Consequences

_The room is full but all I see_

_Is the way your eyes just blaze through me_

_Like fire in the dark_

_We're like living art_

_-_-Miley Cyrus, "Who Owns My Heart"

"_This isn't fair," Miley said, wiping tears away with her fingers. "For the first time in my life, I was doing something athletic and I wasn't totally sucking, and then THIS happens!" she yelled, stabbing her fingers at the large black brace encircling her injured knee. She covered her face with her hands and yelled something unintelligible as she threw her head back, not stopping until her back smacked against the padding of the training table she was stretched out upon. Her head, however, didn't strike that table. Instead it was gently cushioned by a small yet strong hand that absorbed the impact of Miley's sudden movement. "Why did this have to happen?" Miley moaned, eyes clenched tightly shut against the pain and frustration surging through her body._

"_I don't know, honey, but it did, and we can get through this." _

_Miley dropped her hands to her sides and blinked her eyes open, tears momentarily muddling her vision as she focused on the face hovering over her attentively. It didn't matter if the hair framing that lovely face was pink, as it was tonight, or blonde, as it usually was, or lime green, or pure white, or fiery orange, or any of a dozen other colors that Lola Montana sported. What mattered was the face that Miley loved more than any other sight imaginable, the face that spoke of love and devotion without uttering a single syllable: Lilly._

_Miley reached up and hugged Lilly, pulling her down onto the table with her. "There's no way I'm lettin' that skank just walk off with a win tonight," she said slowly as she clung to Lilly._

_Lilly pulled back, concern evident on her face as she looked into her wife's eyes. "No," she said resolutely, slowly shaking her head. "I'm not letting you go back out there with your knee and who knows what else already hurt, just to let Mikayla take another cheap shot at you!" _

_Miley could see the steel shining in her best friend's gaze, and she acknowledged that there would be no way she could talk Lilly into letting her go back out there hurt. Truthfully, she didn't WANT to go back out there right now. Her knee felt like someone had injected fire into it, her left shoulder hurt just taking a breath, her head was throbbing and the only thing her eyes could focus on was her Lilly. But even thinking of putting all that into words made her head swim, so instead all that came out of her mouth was a soft, "It hurts, Lilly Bear."_

_The starkness of her best friend's trembling voice hit Lilly harder than any physical impact could. Her lips quivered as tears flowed more freely; she tenderly brushed a strand of Hannah's long, straight blonde hair behind Miley's left ear as she fought to regain her composure. "I'll take care of you," she finally said, wanting to say more but knowing that Miley would understand. She always did, and she always would._

_Miley smiled back through her own tears. "I know you will, baby," she said, and she did know. "But now there's something else you've got to do for me."_

_Lilly nodded. "Anything, honey. Just tell me, and I'll do it." She sniffed once, wanting the tears and runny nose to go away. She wanted Miley's pain to go away even more._

_Miley's smile was tinged with sadness now. She gazed into Lilly's sparkling sapphire eyes, otherwordly and beautiful through her tears, for long seconds, then she finally said, "You have to finish this for me, Lilly Bear. You have to be my knight." _

"_Uh uh!" Lilly quickly said, shaking her head. "I'm not leaving you! Not with you hurt!"_

_Miley reached up with both hands, flinching as pain bit deep into her left shoulder but not stopping until she was cradling Lilly's face in her hands. "She can't hurt me anymore right now," she said, and she knew that Lilly would see that once she thought about it. "And you don't want to see her win any more than I do."_

_Lilly couldn't deny that. "But will they even let me take your place tonight?" she asked, doubt creeping into her voice._

_Miley nodded. "Yeah, they will. They've got a live show goin', and the last thing they want is for people to tune out because there's no more action." She smiled as her memory cast back several years, recalling memories of the first time Lilly had been forced to step up and carry a live television show by herself; her best friend had stolen the show that night, and Miley knew she would do it again tonight. "Do it, sweetheart, please. Do it for me." Miley smiled. "I'm your princess. You're my knight. And I need my champion tonight."_

_Lilly closed her eyes and thought. Miley wanted her to do it, and she would. She had promised her. "Anything," she said softly before opening her eyes slowly. "I said I'd do anything for you, and I meant it. But I don't want to leave you back here alone."_

"_Who said I was stayin' back here?" asked Miley with a hint of a smile. "I'm wantin' to watch you beat her butt into the ground!"_

As Lilly stepped into her starting zone for the Powerball challenge, she continued to glare daggers at Mikayla across the arena. Powerball saw the two contestants on _Celebrity Gladiators_ start at opposite ends of a wide arena, with several barrels spaced over the floor. Points were scored by tossing rubber balls into the narrow openings atop the barrels, with the center barrel worth twice as many points as the four barrels closer to the two contestants, with each woman having two barrels between her and the central barrel. A single gladiator started between the two near barrels on each side, with the more valuable center barrel guarded by another two gladiators. Each end held a barrel with both red and blue colored balls, necessary since the competitors moved from end to end as the timer ticked down on the event.

"Competitors ready?" asked the referee from his position on the side of the zone.

Mikayla waved dismissively in reply, giving the referee a brief glare before she settled her gaze on the nearest Gladiator, a powerfully built brunette named Python.

Lilly nodded curtly at the referee before taking quick stock of the field layout: one Gladiator in front of her, one in front of Mikayla on the opposite end of the event area, and two Gladiators in the center, flanking the central barrel. She reached beside her and positioned her left hand directly over a blue rubber ball in the bin beside her.

The shrill whistle signaled the event's start. Lilly grabbed the ball and immediately started by taking three steps forward and to the right, then she cut back and shot by Siren. She looked down the field, watching Mikayla get shoved nearly to the ground by Python, then she had to shift her attention to Comet, a short but startlingly quick Gladiator who was one of the central barrel's guards.

Lilly cut to the left, shifting the ball she was carrying to her left hand. Comet matched her move, closing in as Venom, the second center Gladiator moved to intercept Mikayla, who was racing toward the central goal. Lilly took three hard strides to the left, then she cut back to the right. Again, Comet matched her movement, and now she was almost on top of Lilly. Lilly shoved hard back to the left, digging her shoes as far as they'd bite into the firm ground, extending her left arm and the ball in her hand all the way to the left.

As Comet shifted her body weight and committed to meeting Lilly's leftward lunge, Lilly flipped the ball out of her left hand, not really caring about scoring a goal at this point. As she did so, she burned the fleeting image of Mikayla missing her shot and then running past Venom into her mind's eye in that split second. Lilly ducked and threw her entire body into a spin move, rotating counterclockwise but moving her body to her right, using Comet as a screen against Mikayla.

Mikayla never saw Lilly coming. She had taken a poorly chosen shot, missing the goal entirely, and had just run around Venom's right side; in turn, Venom had stopped pursuing her once the ball had left Mikayla's hand. Mikayla's mind was on hurrying to the other side, reloading with another ball and taking another shot at more points, not keeping track of where Lola Montana was on the field.

Lilly had to extend her left hand to the ground to keep from falling, momentarily bracing herself as she spun low and hard. Through her peripheral vision she saw the red of Mikayla's sports bra and shorts, and she used her powerful legs to launch herself upward while she aimed her left shoulder squarely between those two images of red in her peripheral vision.

The point of her left shoulder caught Mikayla directly in the solar plexus, and Lilly allowed herself to smile grimly as she heard the _whoosh _of air escape from Mikayla's lungs. Extending her legs fully as she continued to drive her body into the brunette's, Lilly's feet left the ground as she picked the brunette off the ground entirely, propelling her backward and sending her spilling to the ground. Mikayla landed hard on her back, followed by her limp limbs smacking the mat just an instant later. Lilly continued her mid-air twist until she was facing forward, lightly touching down on her toes right before Mikayla hit the mat several feet in front of her.

Lilly took four steps to stand towering over Mikayla's prone figure, rolling painfully on the ground as the singer gasped for air. For an interminably long moment Lilly just glared down at her enemy, fists balled and wanting nothing more than to fall upon the mouthy woman and pound her face in, protective headgear or not. Former friend or not. She had crossed an inviolable line when she had deliberately hurt Miley, and now she had to pay.

Miley was watching the action on a monitor that had been wheeled into the training room where she lay on the exam table. "No, baby, don't do it. It's not right, whether she deserves it or not," she murmured, talking entirely to herself despite the three other medical personnel now in the room with her. "Don't sink to her level, babe," she whispered. "Please, not even for me. You're better than her, honey. You're better than her."

As more seconds ticked by, Lilly held Mikayla in her burning stare. Mikayla had begun to recover her breath, and as realization dawned in her dark eyes, Lilly could see something else reflected in their oily depths.

_Fear._

Lilly's fingers twitched, like an itch right in the small of her back, begging to be scratched. For a few moments, it felt good to know that Mikayla was afraid of her—no, _terrified_ of her, as was evident in her expression. But then through the crimson haze of rage, she felt a gentle tingle, deliciously cool amidst the rushing heat of the blood pounding in her head. She abruptly looked up, as if she had just realized where she was and what she was doing, then she sprinted across the arena floor to pick up another blue ball.

"Good girl," Miley said to herself as she watched Lilly race away from Mikayla's prone form. She allowed herself to release the breath she had been holding and start breathing normally again. "Now I don't have to explain to our daughter why we need to bail her mommy out of jail later tonight," she mumbled to herself.

As Lilly took another ball, she turned and bolted to her right. She slipped past the powerful but slow Python and slammed the ball into one of the goal pylons. She took a quick glance across the floor at Mikayla, but the brunette was still lying on the floor. _Wimp. She can dish it out but can't take it. No surprise._

Despite the seething anger she held for the smart-mouthed singer, Lilly knew in her heart that she had done the right thing by not falling on top of Mikayla and beating her until her face was the same shade of crimson as her Gladiator outfit. That didn't mean she had to feel all sunshine and light about her decision, though.

After a little over two minutes, the horn sounded. Mikayla had struggled to her feet shortly before the signal to stop, but her gait was more like a drunken stagger as she clutched her arms to her abdomen, still laboring to take a full breath. Lilly, on the other hand, had earned eight points with two goals in the center pylon and four more in the outer pylons.

As she walked over to the sideline where some of the crew held a towel and water bottle for her, Lilly smiled as she took the water bottle. "Thanks," she said to the teenager offering the clear bottle, putting a smile on his face. She turned, looking around until she saw Mikayla standing about thirty meters away, being tended to by a small team of first aid personnel.

Lilly took another drink of water, drinking more slowly this time and not stopping until the bottle was nearly empty. When she was finished, she gestured in Mikayla's direction with the water bottle. "She gonna be okay?" she asked the other crew member attending her. He appeared to be closer to Miley's and Lilly's age, early twenties or maybe late teens.

"Looks like it," he said, surveying the way the brunette was yelling and waving her arms at the _Gladiators_ crew. "If she's got enough energy to scream like that, she must be doing better."

Lilly laughed once. "Oh well," she said. "At least she got my point," she added with a smile as she handed the water bottle back to the first boy. She couldn't help but grin as she said, "So what's next for me tonight?"

The rest of the events seemed to race by, with the contest's time reined in by the constraints of the live broadcast's two-hour window. After Atlasphere, Hit and Run, Earthquake, Assault and the Wall, Lilly had obliterated Mikayla's early lead, along with whatever was left of her self-confidence. Assault had been particularly painful for Mikayla; just eight seconds into the event, she was hit in the ribs by a tennis ball fired from the air cannon by Phoenix. As she sat on the sidelines pressing a cold pack against her stinging ribs, she watched Lola Montana prove unhittable to the same sizzling tennis balls, leaping, spinning, ducking, diving and sliding out of the path of everything fired her way. She had missed with the slingshot, notoriously inaccurate in all versions of the television show, and then with the turret cannon, but she had struck home with the rocket launcher, hitting the large target behind Phoenix just inches off the bullseye. As the columns of pyrotechnics shot to life on each side of the target, Lola had pumped her fist in delight as Phoenix was yanked off her perch into the cold water of Gladiator Arena. The intense expression of triumph by the pink-haired star was going to be on countless television shows, highlight films, magazines, and various other forms of media within days, and Mikayla was sure that there would be a picture of her circulating in the media as well, most likely one of her lying on the ground and writhing in pain.

She stood up, not really caring if her ribs were still hurting or not. There was still one final event to be run, and she wasn't finished yet.

Miley made her way back to the arena floor thanks to a pair of crutches someone had finally produced for her. She had been on crutches when she had broken her leg right before moving to Nashville, and it had only taken her a minute to remember the basics of how they worked.

As a few astute fans in the stands spotted Hannah Montana returning to the arena floor, still clad in her blue two-piece uniform, they began to shout and cheer. The others quickly joined in as their more observant friends pointed out the superstar balancing on the crutches, leg protectively encased in the rigid immobilizer, and the cheers rose to a roaring swell inside the coliseum. Miley waved to the crowd, careful to not raise her right arm high enough to lose her balance. She winced slightly as she felt another jolt of pain through her left shoulder, made worse by using the crutches, but she was determined to personally see Lilly compete in at least one event tonight.

"Mrs. Montana, are you sure this isn't going to hurt your leg more?" asked one of the younger production assistants sent to try and bring the stubborn superstar back to the first aid room.

"Nope," Miley replied simply as she continued to hobble her way toward the show's final event, The Eliminator. "Don't matter, though. I'm watchin' my wife and cheerin' her on from where she can hear me." She turned to look back at the young man, who was obviously concerned about her. "I can hurt later," Miley said more quietly, "because my best friend needs me." Without waiting for a reply, she turned her back on him and resumed her slow journey to the Eliminator set.

The Eliminator was a long, physically draining obstacle course. The purpose of Eliminator was simple: the first competitor to cross the finish line won, eliminating the other competitor. The points earned from the other events tonight mattered only because the leader was given a head start in seconds equal to one-half the points difference between the two competitors. The average winning time on Eliminator for the female competitors was between four and four-and-a-half minutes, so even a head start of just a few seconds could make a significant difference.

As Miley reached the Eliminator set, a group of people interposed themselves between her and the event. "Look, ya'll, don't even try to stop me from watchin' Lola, 'cause it ain't gonna happen," she said quickly, flashing a defiant look with her intense blue eyes.

"Mrs. Montana," said an older man with a kind smile, "we're here to help you up the stairs to the finish line. The view's quite a bit better from there."

Miley smiled Hannah's radiant smile for the first time in the last two hours. "Now you're talkin'," she said happily.

As Lilly and Mikayla reached the starting zone of the Eliminator, Mikayla turned suddenly. Lilly reflexively tensed in case Mikayla were to throw a sucker punch, but no such blow came.

"You think you're such hot shit, but you're a fucking joke," Mikayla growled softly. However, instead of the angry reaction she was expecting from the pink-haired actress, Mikayla only got a bemused look in return.

Lilly shook her head slowly as she said, "Whether I win or lose, I get to go home tonight, kiss my daughter, make love to my wife and fall asleep in the arms of someone who loves me for who I am, unconditionally. What have _you_ got to go home to, Mikayla?"

While waiting for a response, Lilly searched the eyes of the young woman she thought she had been forming a friendship with, but now there were no signs of the loneliness or the yearning that she had seen over the last few weeks. Those hints of vulnerability were nowhere to be found, having been replaced with fury, jealousy and bitterness. It was not, Lilly thought, an improvement.

When Mikayla finally spoke, it was through a grim expression that just slightly showed her teeth. "You think I hurt your bitch earlier? Wait 'til you see what I do next."

If Mikayla hadn't've spun and walked away immediately after saying those words, Lilly _would_ have punched her in the face. As it were, she came very close to hitting her anyway, whether it would have been in the back of her head or not. What stopped her attack was the small glance she took at the finish line, where she saw Miley standing on crutches.

Miley saw Lilly freeze, her gaze locked upon her. She waved to her wife, then she put her fingers in her mouth and whistled loudly. "Go get her, Lola!" she yelled, using her free hand to wave wildly to her partner. "Love you, baby!"

The burning rage in Lilly's chest was abruptly surpassed by the even more intense burn of pride in her wife. _Her knee's killing her, but she made it out here to watch me. No way I can screw this up now._ She allowed the grin tickling the corners of her mouth to take over, spreading her lips in a gleeful smile as she waved back to the woman she loved.

"Lola, please take your position."

Lilly turned around to see the referee looking her, pointing at the starting line for her side of the course. "Oh. Sorry." She stepped over to the ready zone, lightly planting her feet as she dropped into a runner's starting pose.

The referee stepped back and turned to look at the two women about to begin their final race of the evening. "Lola, since you currently are leading Mikayla by thirty-two points, you'll have a sixteen second head start."

_Plenty of time_, Lilly thought.

"You will go on the first whistle." The referee turned to look at Mikayla. "Mikayla, you will go on the second whistle. Do both of you understand?"

Lilly nodded, already staring straight ahead.

"Just get it over with," spat Mikayla.

The referee nodded curtly. "Runners, on your marks!" he said, giving them a few seconds before blowing the whistle a single time.

However, instead of exploding out of the start and diving into the water as everyone was expecting, Lilly instead slowly uncoiled and stood up from her starting position. She turned to glare at Mikayla as the seconds of her head start ticked away, prompting confused murmurs from the audience and the _Gladiators_ crew alike. "I don't need a head start to beat you," Lilly said defiantly, arms crossed as she stared directly into Mikayla's surprised eyes.

Lilly didn't move until the whistle blew again. As Mikayla dove forward into the pool, Lilly did the same, with both of them going underwater to swim beneath the flaming ropes burning directly over the surface of the water. By the time they had reached the rope ladder to climb out of the water, Lilly had already pulled out to a three meter lead based on her strong swimming, honed from years of surfing. She quickly ascended the web of robes, reaching the top before Mikayla had even gotten her entire body out of the water.

Miley watched her wife's relentless attack on the Eliminator from her vantage point atop the platform just behind the finish line, adjacent to the pool of water awaiting the competitors after they break through the paper wall delineating the finish line. As Lilly powered through the handbike then slowed to gracefully steal across the balance beam, Miley was again amazed at just what her wife was capable of physically. _She could have been a professional athlete in half a dozen sports. Heck, she probably still could be. But she never even thought of going after a career like that, because she wants to have a normal family with me. Well, as normal as we can get._ She reached up to wipe a tear from her right eye.

"Are you alright, Hannah?" asked Amanda Beard, one of the show's hosts. She had been watching the singer unobtrusively, but when she saw the tear trickle out of Hannah's eye she became concerned.

Miley looked at her and nodded. "Yeah, I'm great," she said with a smile. "It's just, you know, watching her do something like this..." she said, gesturing toward where Lilly was now scampering up the Pyramid at a blistering pace. "She just takes my breath away," Miley finally whispered. Her heart was pounding and her stomach lurching as she opened herself up once again to all the love she held in her heart for Lilly, letting it swell throughout her body and consume her entirely just as it had so many times before. There was nothing shameful in their love, nothing wrong or immoral. The only wrong would be to deny such a bond's legitimacy, to denigrate or belittle it as unworthy when in fact it was more worthy than anything else either woman had ever known, their relationship more honest and true than most people would ever experience.

As Lilly hit the ground running following her ride down the zipline from atop the Pyramid, she pulled up short as she reached the teeter-totter. Forcing herself to adopt a slower rhythm, she eased her right foot onto the narrow beam then quickly ascended until she was at the crux. Keeping her weight mostly balanced atop the device's center, she used her left foot to shift her weight gradually onto the other half of the beam, making it swing downward. As soon as it had struck the ground, she scampered down the remainder of the beam and raced to the final obstacle of the Eliminator.

Miley took her eyes off her wife to take a quick peek at Mikayla's progress. The brunette had just reached the Pyramid's apex and was gripping the zipline. Miley laughed softly as she considered just how far a lead Lilly had opened up, even after giving up her head start. Satisfied that Mikayla was being sufficiently pummeled, Miley returned her focus to her best friend, who was staring at the quite evil treadmill that had long ago been given the dubious moniker of "The Travelator."

The final and often most insidious obstacle on the course, the Travelator was a treadmill set in a forty-five degree incline, with the belt moving in the direction of the competitor. Even with a rope hanging down the upper half of the treadmill, the combination of the steep incline and the moving belt made this a true challenge for most competitors.

After concentrating on the final obstacle for a few seconds, Lilly lightly sprinted toward the incline, increasing her foot speed as she reached the moving belt of the treadmill. With lightning-quick steps she pumped her strong legs up the incline, defying the treadmill's attempt to negate her progress.

When she reached the end of the knotted rope but didn't bend down to grab it for support, Miley briefly thought that Lilly was going to try and climb the entire length of the incline using nothing but her own speed and strength. In fact, that was exactly what Lilly had initially planned to do; however, by the time she had passed the end of the rope she realized that to make such an attempt would be taking an unneeded risk merely to satisfy her own curiosity. She wasn't sure how far back Mikayla was, and it would be devastating to risk a fall and give the tramp a chance to steal a victory.

Miley breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Lilly dip low enough to grab the length of rope, using it to ascend the last few feet of the incline and step onto level ground. With a beaming grin, Lilly ran the last few steps, grabbing the hanging rope and swinging through the thin paper marking the finish line. She laughed loud enough for the cameras to capture her delight as she released the rope, letting herself fall into the warm pool at the end of the course. Her legs were burning after the very demanding obstacle course, but the thrill of competition mixed with triumph ensured that she felt nothing but elation right then.

Miley screamed in delight as the fireworks went off inside the stadium, marking Lilly's win in tonight's competition. Without thinking, she used her good leg to jump into the water, dropping the crutches behind her to clatter onto the platform. Lilly met her right away, wrapping her arms around her wife for a deep kiss. She gave Miley just enough time to catch her breath before they sank under the surface, lips pressed tightly together. They held their kiss for several seconds before finally staring into each other's eyes while their bodies hung suspended in the calm depths of the pool and releasing their kiss. Lilly grinned first, with Miley immediately doing the same before then swimming for the surface. They broke the surface together, each drawing in a cool breath and paddling the short distance to the side of the pool.

"You did it, hon!" Miley said gleefully as she grabbed Lilly's free hand with her own, planting another kiss on her wife's pink lips. "You totally destroyed her!"

Lilly wiped her mouth before replying with a smirk, "Was there every any doubt?"

Miley laughed her deep laugh, the same laugh that always sent quivers down Lilly's spine all the way to her toes and then back up again. "Uh uh, baby. She never had a chance, not from the time you put on that outfit." She paused before adding in a lower voice, "And thanks for not killing her out there. I knew you wanted to really hurt her, but it really wouldn't have been the example we want to set."

"I know," Lilly replied with a similarly subdued voice. "For our fans or for our daughter."

Miley looked into Lilly's bright blue eyes, made even more prominent when contrasted with the wet strands of pink hair peeking out from under her helmet. "That's one of the reasons I love you as much as I do, honey," she said, her voice suddenly thick.

"Part of being a parent," Lilly said, feeling her eyes start to tear up. "And you've turned out to be one heck of a mom yourself, Hannah Montana," she added before leaning in to kiss Miley again.

Normally the hosts of the show would be interviewing the winner immediately after they exited the pool, but Amanda was perceptive enough to know that the tender show of affection between the two superstars would make more of an emotional impact than any interview could just yet. She held back out of camera range, letting the camera operator focus in on the smiling faces and soft chatter of Hannah and Lola Montana as they floated at the edge of the pool.

The splashing of another body hitting the water broke the spell, causing Miley to look over Lilly's shoulder while Lilly turned to see who had joined them in the pool. As her eyes registered what her brain was already telling her, that it was Mikayla who had finally crossed the finish line and splashed down into the pool, Lilly's body tensed involuntarily. She started to kick off from the wall, but Miley gripped her left hand tightly, holding her in place.

Lilly turned back to her best friend. "What are you doing?" she asked.

"Keepin' you from drownin' her," Miley replied matter-of-factly.

Lilly sighed and eased her struggling. "I wouldn't drown her," she said dejectedly.

"Mm hm."

"Maybe just hold her underwater for a while."

"Mm hmm."

"Or maybe a minute or two."

"That sounds more believable."

Lilly sighed. "Okay, fine. I won't try to drown her."

"You promise?"

Lilly sighed again. "I promise."

"Okay, good." Miley released her hand.

Lilly flashed her a sneaky grin, going so far as to stick the tip of her tongue out of the corner of her mouth, which in turn caused Miley's hand to shoot out and grab Lilly's hand again. "You're so easy," Lilly teased, giving Miley a grin before relaxing and allowing Miley to pull her back in. Miley's upper body strength had improved considerably from when she was a teenager, both from exercising with Lilly and from carrying around a baby, and she easily pulled Lilly back to her. Lilly grabbed the ladder and easily pulled herself up out of the water, then she turned and extended a hand to help her wife. Miley skipped the lowest rung of the ladder and instead used her good leg to step onto the second rung and lift herself out of the water. Once she was standing, Lilly braced herself and gently lifted Miley up until she could stand on her good leg, keeping her arm around Lilly for support.

As the former Olympic gold medalist Amanda Beard began to speak to Hannah and Lola Montana, Mikayla silently hauled herself up the ladder and out of the pool. She stood next to the three of them for a moment, silently fuming, before stalking past them and heading to the locker room. She knew that she was supposed to stay and have her own interview, but she no longer cared. _I can't stand the two of them. Do they expect me to just stand there while everybody fawns all over them? Well, fuck that._ She unsnapped her helmet and flung it to the ground as she kept walking away.

"Mikayla!" shouted one of the show's crew. "Mikayla! We still need to do an interview with you."

"Then do it from the locker room," she growled without slowing and even turning to look at the speaker. "Or wait until I've got some damn dry clothes on. I really don't care." She stomped down the hall, fuming at how the evening had turned out. Sure, she had gotten a good cheap shot in on Hannah Montana, but that fucking bitch Lola had positively kicked her ass up and down the arena after that. She was so caught up in her thoughts that she nearly ran into Margot, who was hovering outside Mikayla's locker room.

"What?" Mikalya asked hotly, glaring at her manager. "You waiting to sneak a peek at me changing again? Or did it get too embarrassing for you, watching me get my fucking ass stomped into the ground out there?"

"Well, maybe you should have thought about something like that happening before you broke Blondie's knee," Mikayla said snidely.

Mikayla's mouth dropped open in shock. _"IT WAS YOUR FUCKING IDEA TO DO IT, MARGOT!"_ she yelled, standing on her tip toes to bring her eyes level with the older woman's. "Or had you forgotten that already, now that it's more convenient to blame _me_ for it?" she said, voice lower but no less threatening. Before Margot could reply, Mikayla kicked the locker room door open with a loud bang, followed by a softer thump as the door hit the wall behind it.

Mikayla opened her locker and pulled her phone out of her purse to check for any new messages. The alert bar indicated at least one text message, so she tapped the screen with her thumbnail to jump to the text messaging page. There were no less than four new messages, but only one of them made her heart skip a beat when she saw the name attached to it: _Vera Blaike._

Her mouth unexpectedly dry, Mikayla's thumb hesitated just above the touchscreen. The timestamp indicated the message had come through a little over an hour ago. _Shit. That's well into the show, and it's after I put Montana out. Shit, shit, shit._

Now Mikayla truly was nervous. Vera had stepped up to try and be there for Mikalya, not just as a friend but as something of a surrogate maternal influence. She also happened to be Mikalya's last living link with her best friend Kasey, not to mention one of the high-level executives at Dyseni Records, Mikayla's record company. Pissing Vera Blaike off would most certainly NOT be in Mikayla's best interests.

Her heart hammering, Mikayla tapped the screen, bringing up the concise message:

_my office tomorrow at 8am. no margot._

_what were you thinking?_

Mikayla closed her eyes and slumped down onto the bench behind her. Not good at all.

Some time later, the metallic jingle of keys unlocking a door heralded the arrival home for Miley and Lilly. There was a lamp on next to the couch, but otherwise the lights were all dark inside. Lilly held the door open for Miley to enter, still walking on her crutches. Once Miley was in, Lilly closed the door behind them and relocked it.

"Mom must have gotten Brooke to sleep," Lilly whispered.

"I'd hope so," Miley whispered back. "It's after midnight. Never thought they were gonna let us go home!"

Lilly helped Miley up the stairs, then she went back down and retrieved the crutches. As they quietly made their way down the upstairs hallway, they stopped and peeked into the guest room. The light from the hall spilled into the room, softly illuminating part of Meredith Truscott's face.

"I guess your mom is spending the night," whispered Miley, grinning quietly.

"Is Brookie in bed with her?" asked Lilly, stepping quietly into the room. She looked at the bed, but there was no sign of their daughter. Once she was back in the hall, she softly said, "No sign of the little lump."

They continued on down the hall to the nursery. The light-sensitive night light was on, filling the room with a soft pink glow. "Awww," said Miley as she stopped just inside the room. Lilly walked with her as they both carefully made their way to the baby bed, where little Brooke had kicked her blanket off. Her little toes were curled up as she lay on her back, a frown on her adorable little face.

Her mothers leaned over the bed, Miley still partially balancing on her crutches. She looked at Lilly, but before she had to utter a word Lilly was already reaching into the bed to cover their baby girl back up. As she settled the blanket back over the little girl's body, Lilly gently ran her fingertips across Brooke's cheek. "Sleep well, little angel," she whispered. "Your mommies love you."

"Absolutely we love you," Miley added softly.

As they spoke, Brooke's face shifted as her body moved slightly. Her frown slowly gave way to a content smile as she rubbed a chubby hand across her face in her sleep, sighing once as she settled in again.

Miley and Lilly smiled at each other, both trying not to laugh out loud at their daughter's personality, already beginning to show hints of itself. They both blew her a kiss before slipping out of her room and going next door to their bedroom. Sleep awaited them with comforting dreams, too.

**Author's Afterword:** I don't think I could apologize enough for how long it took to get this chapter done. I hope you haven't all given up on me. Again, I absolutely will complete not just this story (probably another four chapter or so, I expect) but also the entire run of stories I have planned. I'm not yielding on that. Have patience and send me some strength and time management skills! I've already started on the next chapter, which is a bit unusual for me, but I'm really trying to pick things up. Home and my family has to come first, though, and I've had to really focus on my wife (not just partner now!) and our girls predominantly the last six months. Bear with me, though, and I'll get us through the rest of Lilly's and Miley's stories. Still some excitement to come in the next few chapters, too...

Jo


	29. Chapter 29: Scarred

**Author's Note:** Took longer than I was hoping, but here's the latest chapter! Time for talking when you're done reading!

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist or publication mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo K.

Chapter 29: Scarred

_If I could have just one night_

_To be with you and make it right_

_What we were and what we are_

_Is hidden in the scars_

_If I could take you there_

_I won't let go, this I swear_

_You won't have to wonder what we are_

_'Cause you won't have to ever look too far_

_It's in the scars_

_It's hidden in the scars_

_-_-Miley Cyrus, "Scars"

As she stormed out of Vera Blaike's office, Mikayla slammed the heavy wooden door hard enough to knock pictures off the wall in the next room. One hand held to her face in an attempt to hide her tears, she walked briskly down the hallway on the sixth floor of Dyseni Records. It had always been a long hallway, but this morning it seemed much, much longer than it ever had before.

"Get the fuck out of my way!" Mikayla screamed at two interns who had the misfortune of stepping out of the ladies' room directly in front of her. The two teenagers fell over each other in their attempt to reverse time and never have left the restroom, but Mikayla didn't so much as give them a second glance as she powered past them, her mind unable to process any conscious thought other than the burning need to get away, to get out of the Dyseni building, to simply run far, far away and maybe never stop running.

She took the stairs down from the administration floor, bypassing the elevator and the chance at being stuck inside a steel box with other people and no means of escape. By the time she slammed the stairwell door open into the parking garage, her tears had soaked the collar of her shirt, with dark smudges down her neck from where her mascara had bled along the same paths.

"Morning, Mikayla!" called out one of the Dyseni staff, a chipper blonde who Mikayla wouldn't have recognized on a good day.

Mikayla muttered something unpleasant under her breath, not really caring if the blonde heard her or not. She quickly unlocked her car door, stabbing her key into the ignition and twisting it to bring the powerful V-12 engine in her Aston Martin to rumbling life. She slid the ignition into Reverse and hit the gas, momentarily spinning the tires as she shot backwards out of her parking place; she smoothly stepped on the clutch and shifted into first gear, this time getting the rear tires to break loose in a howling spin as she sent her steel-gray car shooting forward and out of the parking garage.

She kept it under eighty until she hit I-10, then she opened the throttle up. She screamed past a handful of cars, those lucky enough to be on the freeway after rush hour had passed, then she had a blissful stretch of open road for several minutes. She only glanced down at the speedometer once, noting that the needle was hovering just shy of 140 mph before returning her full attention to the highway. As she shot down the Santa Monica Freeway, Mikayla felt her jangling nerves click into place, all her attention focused on the stretch of road in front of her, with no room for second-guessing or replaying the unpleasant events of her morning so far.

A few minutes and just about twenty miles later, she began to ease off the accelerator, slowing to a much more reasonable 60 mph as she approached the California coast and the Pacific Coast Highway. She turned north before doubling back onto Ocean Avenue and heading south. As she passed the Hotel California, she thought again about how much she hated that damn song. She checked the clock on the Vanquish's sleek console.

_Nine-forty. Over an hour before that motherfucking therapy session._ She sighed, giving one last glare at the surprisingly modest Hotel before the traffic began to move again. There was no way she was getting out of the therapy session, no matter how much she didn't feel like it, but she wasn't in any shape emotionally to deal with the interviews scheduled for the afternoon. Every magazine and newspaper she could think of wanted to quiz her on what exactly had happened on _Gladiators_. Had she deliberately hit Hannah Montana's knee? Did she do it as a warning that just went too far, or was she really trying to hurt her rival? Why was there so much bad blood between her and the Montanas, and did Dyseni Records support the feud? Had they _created_ the feud?

Mikayla sighed loudly. _Too much shit to deal with right now_. She picked up her phone, pressing the button to trigger its voice recognition dialing feature. "Fucking bitch," she said loudly, smiling as the phone recognized the phrase and dialed the number it associated with that charming expression.

"_Hi, this is Margot. Talk to me after the beep."_

"Margot, this is Mikayla. Cancel those interviews for this afternoon. Tell them that I've got a headache or something from busting my ass last night. They can reschedule for tomorrow if they want, or the next day. I just really don't feel like answering any questions today." She hesitated, unsure how much to add to the message. "And don't try to fucking call me today, either, or tonight. I've got some... thinking to do." She hit the End button, terminating the call. She set her phone back down in the cupholder and checked her side mirrors before changing lanes and pulling away from the cars around her.

When Margot listened the message several minutes later, her first feeling was that of concern. Not exactly concern for Mikayla, despite the hesitation and flagging confidence she could detect in the normally arrogant singer's voice, but concern for her own financial future if Mikayla were heading toward another emotional meltdown. Several of the warning signs were popping up with increasing frequency; she should know, after all, since she was typically the one to pull the little brat out of whatever drunken mess or drug-fueled tirade Mikayla was so damn good at getting herself into. This time, however, it might be too much for even Margot's considerable skills to fix. At least Mikayla didn't seem to be drinking or using this time. Every test she had taken had been passed without a hint of trouble; that was certainly a big plus this time around. But it seemed that the feud with the Montana bitches was finally beginning to take its toll on Mikayla, despite all the hate she held for Hannah Montana in particular.

Then there was the fact that Margot was sure Mikayla was keeping secrets from her. What kind of secrets or how many she wasn't sure, but ever since Mikayla had begun her comeback, the younger woman had stood firm on some boundaries. Increasingly Mikayla was beginning to feel that she held more power over Margot than the older woman held over her, and if Margot were to finally prove otherwise and put the little tramp in her place, it would almost certainly be a Pyrrhic victory. Mikayla's career would be over once and for all, and Margot would be without her sole (and quite lucrative) client.

After several slow minutes of deliberation, Margot picked up her phone and dialed one of the numbers she had stored into her cell phone with no identifying names or initials whatsoever. As soon as she heard the click of connection, Margot flatly said, "You know who this is," not waiting for confirmation.

She closed her eyes and steeled herself. "We need to talk."

Across town, Miley and Lilly sat in the reception area of Los Angeles Orthopedics, Miley's knee still in the rigid immobilizer with her leg propped up on a chair in front of her. She hated waiting rooms enough on their own, but having Lord knows how many people hovering over Hannah and Lola Montana while they waited was increasing her irritation level exponentially.

"Honey, take a deep breath," Lilly whispered as she took Miley's right hand in her own, the warmth from Lilly's skin seeping into her own. "They're staring at you because they love you. Lots of them are kids, too. Just close your eyes and relax."

Miley turned to look into her wife's glittering sapphire eyes. "How the heck can I relax when we've had fifteen people ask for autographs, twenty-three wantin' pictures with us, and four wantin' us to sign their casts!" she hissed. Normally she would have better composure, but her knee had throbbed most of the night; the pain had only abated when Lilly took her mind off the discomfort in an extremely pleasurable way early in the morning. A very, very pleasurable way.

"Now that's the pretty smile I like to see on my favorite singer's face," Lilly softly whispered into Miley's right ear. "I wonder what you could be thinking of to put a smile like that on your face..."

Miley's eyes flicked up again, again connecting instantly with her best friend's matching gaze. Now there was a definite twinkle in Lilly's eyes, and Miley knew from experience that her own eyes would be doing much the same. They always did when she thought about Lilly touching her in the intimate ways that only she ever would. "I like your ways of takin' my mind off my knee better than any old doctor's," she said, her voice deeper than its usual conversational timbre. And in truth, her knee wasn't hurting as much now as it had been last night. Maybe Lilly's touch really was magic. Miley's smile stretched into a grin. _Lord knows having her in my life really has worked more than one miracle._

"Mrs. Montana?" a voice called out from across the vast waiting room, drawing Miley's and Lilly's attention away from each other temporarily. "We're ready for you now," said a nurse wearing scrubs that were a soft lavender color. "Do you need a wheelchair or anything?"

"Nah, we can make it," Miley said as Lilly helped her to her feet.

"You need me to carry you, baby?" Lilly asked, her voice low but full of concern. She knew that using the crutches last night and this morning was hurting Miley's arms and shoulders, but Miley had insisted on using them when they went to the doctor's office today. Lilly suspected that if today's appointment hadn't been hastily scheduled at the insistence of _Gladiators_ and its network, she and Miley would have been content to simply take it easy at home today. Lilly frowned oh-so-slightly. _I could have carried her around back home. Still could here, if I hadn't've been such a dummy when I got dressed this morning._ She glanced down at Lola's outfit today: a red-and-black checkered dress with a thin silver belt cinched around her waist, the bottom of the short skirt rising dangerously up her thigh. _Yeah, everybody'd get a show if I bent over enough to pick my baby up and carry her to the exam room. Well, at least I've got on those cute new peach panties that Miles got me._

Miley watched the emotions dance across her wife's face, both curious and amused at the internal discussion her wife was having with herself. She signaled the nurse that it would be just a moment, then she returned her gaze to Lilly's cute face in time to meet her best friend's bright blue eyes. "Hey," Miley said, a friendly smile on her pink lips.

"Hey," replied Lilly, unable to help the shy grin pulling her lips back under Miley's loving gaze. "You, um, want me to carry you?" she asked, toeing her bright red leather strappy sandal into the low carpet of the waiting room. "'Cause I can."

Miley looked into Lilly's eyes for a second, then she very clearly looked down at the rather impractical—but altogether adorable—dress that Lola was wearing today. She flicked her eyes back up to her wife's; her tongue lightly licked the corner of her mouth, just the tip poking out for a bare second before it disappeared back inside her mouth. "Temptin'," she said, unconsciously drawing the word out over several seconds.

Lilly felt her entire body shiver abruptly. Whenever she heard Miley do that with her voice and her accent it sent her insides right over the cliff of desire, even after their years of being together. She reached out with her right hand and carefully grasped Miley's upper left arm. "Look," she whispered, keeping her words so faint that even Miley had to lean closer to make them out. "You know that whenever you do that thing with your words when you drag them out like that it makes me crazy," she whispered, lips so close that they brushed the warm skin of Miley's delicate ear. "So you really need to tell me if you want me to carry you or not, because if you say another word to me like that instead, I'm gonna cum right here in front of all these people."

Miley's own heart was already singing in her ear before Lilly's blunt words, and it sped up even more as they settled on her mind. "Carry me, please," Miley said quickly, suddenly not trusting her good leg to support her weight. Lilly smiled and scooped Miley up, glad that at least one of them had thought far enough ahead to wear more sensible shorts.

As Lilly crossed the waiting room carrying Miley easily, several eyes widened at the surprising display of Lola Montana's strength. Truthfully, Miley wasn't really heavy at all, with her and Lilly both coming in at just about one-hundred-five to one-hundred-ten pounds, and Lilly's strong arms and legs could carry significantly more than that despite her own deceptively small stature. Miley simply closed her eyes and buried her warm smile against the even hotter skin of Lilly's throat, reveling in being loved and protected in such an amazing way. "I love you," she mumbled against Lilly's neck, placing a soft open-mouthed kiss against her best friend's smooth skin.

For her part, Lilly just grinned as she felt her body shiver internally at her lover's touch. More than once she had held Miley off the ground while they made love, although they had reduced the frequency after they nearly fell during one particularly acrobatic session that involved Miley pinned against the bedroom wall while sitting on Lilly's shoulders, her dark brown hair brushing against the tall ceiling.

The nurse efficiently checked Hannah in, breaking Lilly's train of thought as the older woman took Miley's blood pressure and made a few notes before wishing Hannah and Lola well and stepping out of the room. Lilly's phone beeped once, prompting her to retrieve it from her glittery black clutch purse.

"Who's that?" asked Miley curiously.

Lilly tapped her way to the message. "Jen," she said, reading the text message. "She wants to know if we know anyone who's really good with computers. Says she's in the market for a new computer."

Miley thought for a minute before saying, "Lu's really the best I know of. I mean, that's what she does for a livin'."

"Yeah, that's who I was thinking of, too," Lilly replied, nodding ever-so-slightly. "Okay, I'll tell her and give her Luanne's number."

"Might want to give Lu a heads up," Miley said, dangling both her legs off the side of the examination table but only swinging her healthier leg back and forth in Lilly's direction.

Lilly tapped out the text, finally looking up at where Miley's bare foot swung just short of kicking her in the head. "Do you mind?" she asked, trying not to smirk.

"Only when I'm bein' good," Miley tossed back with a saucy smile.

"Oh really?" Lilly said, uncrossing her legs and standing up. She moved closer to Miley, close enough to trap Miley's legs against the table. "And just exactly what else do you do when you're 'bein' good'?" she teased as she leaned her mouth in closer to Miley's.

"Mmmm," growled Miley as their lips touched, pressing firmly against each other as they kissed deeply. "Well," she said against Lilly's lips, "I think you might like me when I'm bein' bad even better."

The door opening drew both girls' attention but was insufficient to make them release each other from the tight embrace. "Oh!" gasped the young nurse who walked in on them, obviously not expecting the sight awaiting her.

"It's okay," Lilly said with a smile. "We're married."

"Not every day the parents get to go out without our little girl," Miley added. "Got to make the most of it when we get it."

"Yeah, you'll be getting it," Lilly whispered in Miley's ear, sending a cold chill down her back. "When we get home."

The nurse fanned herself with the slim chart she was carrying. "Um, the doctor wants to get an MRI of your knee, Mrs. Montana. Come with me please?"

Lilly saw the hint of fear in Miley's steely blue eyes. She quickly took her best friend's hand and held on tightly. "I'll be with you, baby. It's okay." She squeezed to emphasize her point, which in turn prompted Miley to offer a brave if weak smile in return.

They followed the nurse down the hallway, Lilly supporting Miley's injured side as they walked, then another hallway before stopping at a door marking **Imaging**. The nurse opened the door, then motioned for Miley and Lilly to follow her in. They did so, but Miley stopped short when they stopped next to a large machine with a cylindrical opening in the middle.

"This is one a' them tunnel things, right?" Miley said uncertainly as she turned her back to the machine and leaned against the flat table extending out of the cylinder.

"Honey," Lilly said, taking both of Miley's hands. "It's okay," she said, pouring as much calm as she could into the mysterious link between them. "I'll be right here, baby. I'm not ever leaving you."

Miley closed her eyes and leaned forward, burying her face in Lilly's shoulder as she began to quietly weep.

Lilly looked over Miley's shoulder at the nurse. "She hates these things. She got stuck in one when she was really young and it took two hours for them to get her out."

"We can load you in feet first, Mrs. Montana, if that helps," the nurse said, her voice pitched softly in an attempt to not upset Miley any further.

Lilly nodded politely. "That'll help a lot, thanks," she said. She began taking off her own belt and kicked her shoes off. "I need to get your belts, hon. They've got metal on them, so they need to come off." As Miley silently complied, Lilly helped tug her two thin belts out of her shorts, handing them along with her own belt and shoes to the nurse. She tenderly removed Miley's earrings, leaving the woven necklace with beads in place since it had no metal components. Finally she took her own hoop earrings out, depositing them on the tray provided for jewelry and adding their wedding and engagement rings.

"None of your items leave the room," the nurse told them as she carried them to a large storage container on the far side of the room. "This locker is magnetically shielded, so everything will be just fine in here while we run the scan. We'll be fast, I promise."

Miley nodded and wiped the tears that were running down her cheeks. She hopped up onto the table and lay down as Lilly helped her get properly positioned. When the table began slowly sliding into the MRI tunnel, she couldn't help but start crying again as she tightly clenched her eyes shut. Immediately she felt Lilly's warm lips on her forehead, whispering encouragement and support to her. Miley reached up and squeezed Lilly's hands as the dull clanging of the scanner started, and for the next twenty minutes she focused on nothing but Lilly's warm grip, her tender murmurs of love and the fiery caress of her wife's lips across her face and head.

When the terrible clanging noise of the machine slowed and finally stopped, Miley was shaken up but still lucid. As soon as the table had been taken out of the MRI tunnel, she slowly sat up. She saw that Lilly's own eyes were red and slightly swollen, and she felt terrible. Lilly had shared all the love and comfort that she could with Miley, and all Miley had shared with her was fear and misery. "I'm sorry," said Miley as she leaned in and pressed her forehead and against Lilly's, rubbing their noses together briefly.

"It's okay," replied Lilly with an honest smile. "I tried to take as much of it as I could away from you. That's why it hit me so hard."

Miley felt her bottom lip quiver at Lilly's admission, and she silently cursed at herself for having such a ridiculous fear.

"Don't."

Miley looked up into Lilly's glistening eyes. "What?"

"I said, don't." Lilly's gaze was serious, boring into Miley's eyes. "Don't try and blame yourself for this." Before Miley could protest, Lilly said, "I know you too well, Hannah Montana, remember?" with a warm smile. "You always try to be so tough and 'I-have-it-all-together', and when something doesn't cooperate with that image you feel guilty."

Miley laughed, aware that no one had come into the room yet. "When did you get so darn smart?" she asked her best friend.

Lilly reached out and gently touched Miley's nose with her left index finger. "When I kissed you for the first time," she answered. "That's when I started to figure my life out."

Miley hugged her best friend as tightly as she ever had, not wanting to ever let go. "Me too, girlfriend," she said through tears of happiness. "Me too."

Roughly an hour later, Miley and Lilly left the Orthopedics office. Miley's knee turned out to not have any damage to the cartilage or ligament, just a bone bruise on the patella and quite a bit of swelling around the knee. The long immobilizer she had been given was only slightly better than the one placed on it last night, but it did offer more mobility while still preventing much of the pain from walking.

"I think you healed me last night," Miley said without preamble as Lilly helped her into their electric blue Roadster.

Lilly leaned down and kissed Miley once she was snugly in the passenger seat. "Oh, really?" she asked teasingly. "Do you want another session tonight?"

"Well, duh," Miley replied, fastening her seat belt as Lilly closed the passenger door. When Lilly took the driver's seat, Miley turned to her. "I'm serious, Lilly. I really think that my knee hurts a lot less today than it did last night before we made love."

"Well, you sure popped that kink out of my back last night," Lilly said, casting Miley a grin as she started the car. "What was that song about 'sexual healing'?"

In another part of Los Angeles, Mikayla was speeding down the road to her dance studio. Things had gotten so bad lately that even dancing didn't give her the release it used to; it had become impossible to clear her mind of everything she was dealing with.

She frowned. Well, there _was_ one way she could clear her mind, for a while at least. But she refused to give in to the weaknesses of her past. She had made a promise.

Angrily, Mikayla cut the wheel and hit the gas, sliding the read end of the Vanquish as she hit the parking lot of the dance studio. She pulled up to the front of the studio, not bothering to park in a marked space. Why should she? Everyone knew who drove this car, and everyone also knew Dyseni Music paid the salaries and bills for this studio.

She went inside with her usual disregard for all others, ignoring polite greetings and whispered insults alike. She went directly to her private locker room and changed, grabbing something to drink and her mp3 player and then stepping into the large dance room she used. This time no one else was using it; as soon as her car had been sighted, the dancers in this room had been given notice to clear out as quickly as possible or face Mikayla's wrath.

She started the music playing and began to warm up, but as she stretched her leg along the rail, she found herself staring into the mirror. Mirrors were nothing new to Mikayla; anyone as vain as she was—and she was vain, she would proudly admit—was intimately acquainted with every mirror she passed by on a regular basis. But as she stared into the dark eyes that so relentlessly bored back into her, she felt a feeling both unfamiliar and unwelcome.

"Who the fuck am I?" she asked herself softly.

"_You're you, Mikki. And I'm me. That's all we need."_

Mikayla shook her head as the distant memory came rushing back into her consciousness, Kasey's smiling face as bright in her mind's eye as if she was standing next to her today. Kasey had told her that on Mikayla's fourteenth birthday. They had been talking about the future, and how they wouldn't let the music industry change them.

_We were so fucking stupid. And naïve. We had no clue what was waiting for us. The parties. The alcohol and drugs. Jake Ryan. Margot. The... _

_The night when everything changed._

"God, Kasey, I miss you so much," Mikayla said as she turned and slid down the wall below the railing. "I miss my best friend. I miss my..."

What had Kasey been, exactly? Her girlfriend? Well, yeah, in one way. But was Kasey a girlfriend in a deeper way? True, they had never kissed or been intimate with each other—at least not that they knew of. Things tended to get a little hazy back then when they were partying. But they had definitely been through more shit than most "best friends," and they were always there for each other. They spent nearly all their waking time together, and they had been comfortable sleeping in the same bed since they were five. When exactly did the line between friendship and _more_ get crossed?

"I'm not gay," Mikayla whispered to herself, clenching her fists tightly. And she knew that she wasn't gay, not exactly. She had always been strongly attracted to boys and men, never to girls or women. But at the same time she couldn't deny that she had carried intense feelings for her best friend, feelings that might have run deeper than she had realized. Feelings that might have grown into something much stronger over their adolescence, had they only been given more time together. Maybe those feelings might even have grown into love, had they been given a chance to blossom fully. But that chance had never come. And it never would.

Mikayla sprang to her feet. She ran to the room's small stereo system, roughly yanking it off the shelf. She grabbed the handful of wires threaded to its back and ripped them out, then she took a running head start before flinging the stereo across the rehearsal room and into one of the mirrored panels lining the walls. The brief seconds of silence from the stereo's disconnection were shattered first by the crunching of impact and then by the crashing of glass onto the hardwood floor, punctuated by the crash of the stereo hitting the floor in between. Mikayla turned and walked back to her locker room, oblivious to the shouts and rapid footsteps approaching the room. She had had enough practice for today.

Lilly and Miley drove back home in Lilly's obsidian Roadster, enjoying the view along the Pacific Coast Highway as they kept a modest pace. They had immediately traded Hannah's electric blue Roadster for the more subdued black of Lilly's in their private garage as soon as possible, then they had hit the nearest Sonic for milkshakes before setting off for home.

Lilly kept thinking that there was something she was forgetting, something she was missing as her mind kept coming back to the previous night's events. Something that Mikayla had said either during the show or immediately after it that was nagging at her subconscious. "So did you ever spend any time around Mikayla before, Miles?" she asked Miley.

"What, you mean a long time ago?" Miley said, turning to face Lilly and brushing her windblown hair out of her face.

"Yeah, like before we were dating."

Miley thought briefly before shaking her head. "Nah, she was a bitch then just like she's a bitch now."

"I know you said she was bad, but was she really this hateful when we were younger?"

Miley shook her head. "Lilly, the first time I ever met her, I thought we might able to be friends. I introduced myself and tried to be nice, and she told me that she wasn't interested. Then she went on to brag about how she was gonna take all my Hannah's Fannahs away from me, because _she_ was the next big thing."

"That's just so odd," Lilly said after a few moments of reflection. "I mean, that time you introduced me to her on the set of that movie she and the Jerk were filming, it seemed like she tried to be nice to us."

"Probably because they were screwin' back in their dressin' rooms every chance they got and she wanted to rub it in my face," Miley said flatly. She turned to look at Lilly as old guilt, thick and bitter like congealing motor oil, began to bubble up from deep inside. "I'm so, so sorry that I put you through everything I did with that loser, Lilly," she said as she reached over and took Lilly's right hand. She tenderly kissed Lilly's hand time and time again, not stopping even when a single tear struck the back of Lilly's hand, splashing salty drops onto Miley's lips.

"Miles, honey, you don't have to apologize for what happened in the past any more," Lilly said gently. She knew that even now Miley felt true remorse for the emotional roller coaster Lilly had been on for years due to the on-and-off-again relationship between Miley and Jake Ryan. But remorse was understandable; guilt was not. Not at this point. "You already apologized to me a long time ago, Miley, and I told you then that I forgave you the second you asked me to. Don't feel guilty about the past, baby, not when we've buried all those bad memories under so many wonderful, amazing, beautiful ones we've made together."

Miley looked up at Lilly, smiling lovingly at her wife, who was surprisingly wise for such a young age. "There's a song in what you just said," she said knowingly.

Lilly returned Miley's smile. "I love it when I inspire you to write a song. It makes me feel extra special."

"That's because you _are_ extra special, baby," Miley said, running her long fingers through Lilly's lightly curled blonde hair. "Hey!" she said suddenly.

Lilly jumped at Miley's exclamation so close to her ear. "Hope that was worth putting out the hearing in that ear," she said to Miley, a hint of teasing audible in her words. But when she turned to glance at Miley, she saw an expression on her wife's face that she knew all too well. "Oh no," she said. "No, no, no! I know that 'I've got a plan' grin, Miley Truscott! I've seen it five hundred times!"

"And you've gone along with it five hundred times, too," Miley replied pointedly.

"Hey," Lilly said, flashing Miley her own cheery grin, "you've got a really cute butt. What can I say?"

"Uh! I thought you always had my back because you loved me!"

"Well, that was part of it. But mostly your hot ass."

Miley shifted in her seat, pointing her rear at Lilly. "Is it still as hot?" she asked, quite enjoying teasing her wife.

Lilly nodded, trying not to laugh. "Honey, your ass is still hotter than the sun."

Miley sat back in her seat, a smug grin on her face. "Well, it's good to know I still got it," she said with a content sigh. "But seriously, I just realized that I do know somebody who might remember Mikayla from back then. She used to party like there was no tomorrow. Still does, from what I hear." Miley started texting furiously, oblivious to Lilly's interest.

"Well?" Lilly finally asked. "Are you gonna tell me who it is?"

Miley looked up. "I'll introduce you to her tonight, if I can track her down," she said confidently.

Several hours later, a white limousine pulled up outside PAX, one of the wilder nightclubs in Los Angeles. Like pretty much every club in the city, PAX catered to celebrities. In the limo, Lilly gently unbuckled the sleeping Brooke from her carseat as Roxy got out and went inside. "You sure this is a good idea, hon?" Lilly asked Miley.

"Roxy'll make sure that nobody's smoking in there, then she'll come get us. That way we don't have to leave sweet little Meg."

Lilly smiled as she rested their daughter against her shoulder. "Megan Montana," she said softly as she began to rock gently. "I wonder if she'll be a singer like you?"

"She might be an actress like you."

"Or she might do her own thing," Lilly pointed out. "Whatever she does, she'll be amazing, and we'll love her."

"Absolutely," Miley agreed, kissing Brooke's head with a lingering press of her lips.

Soon Roxy was knocking on the window, waving for them to step out. As Miley slid out first, the crowd waiting in line to enter PAX began to whistle and shout. When Lilly slid out, being careful to keep her legs together as she held Brooke, the shouts became cheers and applause. Lilly covered Brooke's head with one of her soft blankets, hoping that it would muffle enough of the noise to keep from waking their daughter up.

As they entered the club, Miley noted that it wasn't as loud as she and Lilly had feared. It had been illegal to smoke in nightclubs in California for several years, and Roxy steered them clear of anyone in violation of that regulation. They quickly were ushered back into one of the large VIP rooms, into what bore more than a slight resemblance to the set of an actively filming adult movie.

As Lilly grimaced and checked Brooke where she rested beneath the thin blanket, still snoozing peacefully, she gave Miley a look that plainly said, _This better be for a good reason_.

Before Miley could say anything, a young blonde with wild, tousled hair uncurled from when she was sitting between two men on a long couch. She stood up and crossed the room, a smile on her face. She was several years older than Miley and Lilly, but she was still beautiful, and sex appeal radiated from her like heat from an oven.

"Hi Hannah," the blonde said, purring over the name before turning to Lilly. "Mmm, and this must be your lovely Lola. God, she's hot."

"Lola," Miley said quickly, "I'd like you to meet Kesha Sebert. Kesha, Lola." Miley then slid a hand in front of Kesha's face, cutting off her view of Lilly. "And she's my wife, Kesh. Plus we have our baby with us, too."

"Oooh," said the older blonde, smile brightening. "Too cute! Can I see her?"

Lilly wasn't sure that was the best idea, but she needed to get the blanket off Brooke in case she was getting too hot. "Sure," she said, using her free hand to tug the blanket off her baby. "But she's asleep, so please don't wake her up."

Kesha's lips pursed into an O-shape as she saw the sleeping girl. "She's beautiful," she said with a whisper. She looked back up into Lilly's eyes and whispered, "You're amazingly lucky, you know." Seeing the confusion in Lilly's blue eyes, Kesha added, "For having her," jerking her head toward Miley. "Hannah's always been one of the best in the whole industry. Honest, faithful, no drugs, no fucking..." She turned to look at Miley and said with a straight face, "How did we ever meet again?"

Miley laughed once, and even Lilly giggled at the joke. "We met because my dad had worked with you, and he got you to help with two of my songs when I was younger."

"Yeah, your dad was hot too," Kesha purred, the sex kitten surfacing once again. "Did you bring him with you?" she asked curiously.

"Nah, he's back home in Tennessee," Miley said. "Hey, we wanted to ask you a few questions if you don't mind."

"Sure," replied Kesha. "Let's go into another room if that's cool with you two. I wouldn't want your baby..."

"Megan," Miley volunteered.

"...Your baby Megan to wake up in a room full of these fucking perverts," Kesha finished, waving her hand in the direction of the half-dozen people on the room's two couches. She stepped out into the hall and walked down to another room. This one was empty, although it appeared to be fully furnished and ready for occupants. "This one is reserved for later," Kesha said teasingly. "For whenever I stop playing around and want to get serious."

"Well, um, thanks for letting us talk here, then," Lilly said, once again feeling slightly out of place. Judging from the unusual fluttering sensation Lilly could feel in her chest and the matching sensation she knew was in Miley's chest as well, even Hannah was out of her element here.

Once they were all seated comfortably, Kesha looked at Miley and said, "So what's on your mind, Hannah Montana?"

Miley took a look at Lilly, getting a smile of support in return. "Well, Kesh," she said as she turned to regard the older blonde again, "how much do you remember about Mikayla from when she used to party with you?"

Kesha laughed loudly for several seconds. "Honey, Mikayla never really partied with me. She was a fucking disaster waiting to happen. When she was younger she and her girlfriend tried to tag along with me and my crew, but after—"

"Whoa," said Lilly. "Did you say _girlfriend?_" she asked, eyes wide with surprise.

Kesha nodded. "Yeah, kid's name was Kathy or Kasey or something like that. She and Mikayla were inseparable, always sorta clinging onto each other without trying to be obvious about it. Kinda like you two, actually... well, before you came out and stopped hiding it." She smiling, gesturing at where Miley and Lilly were holding hands without either of them really aware of doing it.

Miley leaned forward, closer to Kesha. "So you think that maybe that girl and Mikayla were..."

"Well, fuck, it was just a guess, but that's what I had always assumed about the two of 'em, you know?" Kesha said as she sat back, crossing her fishnet-clad legs. "And when Kathy-Kasey-whatever got killed, it sure fucked Mikayla up. That's when she started drinking, hitting the coke, you know, doing some heavy shit."

"What happened to her?" asked Lilly. She was vaguely aware of her mind working in the background, like testing mental puzzle pieces against each other to see if they fit together. "Mikayla's friend, I mean."

"Car wreck," Kesha said. "Never did hear all the details, but from what I did hear, they had been at a party that night, and that Mikayla's friend was pretty hammered the last anyone saw her. Heard Mikayla was with her, too, and that she watched her die."

Miley and Lilly turned to look at each other. "Do _you_ think they were...?" Lilly asked softly.

"I don't know," Miley said quickly. This wasn't a subject they needed to analyze in front of anyone else. "Kesha, thanks a bunch," Miley said, standing to give the slightly older blonde a hug. "I owe you one."

"How about letting me borrow—"

"Not a chance in hell," Miley snapped. "My wife and I are both off-limits. And aren't you straight, anyhow?"

Kesha grinned. "Yeah, but a girl's gotta keep up appearances, HanHan. You know that. Shit, if I actually drank and smoked and screwed like people _think_ I do, I'd have been dead a long time ago."

"Thank you," Lilly said, altogether more comfortable around the eccentric singer now. She was still entirely different from Lilly and Miley, but she seemed to have a good heart beneath all the glitter and glam.

"You're welcome, hot stuff," Kesha said with a smile. "Get that baby home and put her in bed. She doesn't need to be hangin' out here with us."

"You got it," Lilly said with a smile before replacing the blanket over Brooke's head so Roxy could lead them back out to the limousine.

As they hurried out of the nightclub, eagerly hoping they could avoid any embarrassing paparazzi shots of them taking their daughter into a club, Lilly stayed right on Roxy's heels with Miley directly behind her. None of them spoke until they were safely back into the limousine, when Lilly finally turned to Miley and said, "That was different."

"Told you it'd never be boring bein' my wife," Miley responded with just a hint of sass.

"Mmmm," Lilly hummed as she finished buckling Brooke into her carseat and then leaned against Miley's shoulder. "Lucky me." As Miley's arm wrapped around Lilly and held her tightly against her chest, Lilly sighed happily and instantly fell asleep in the most comfortable place in her world: her best friend's arms.

As night wrapped its arms around Los Angeles as well, Mikayla stood in a familiar cemetery, in front of a familiar headstone. The rain that was drizzling around her didn't register in her mind other than when she tossed her long hair back over her shoulder, flinging droplets of water away from her face. "I figured it out, Kasey," she said, keeping her voice low. She hadn't seen anyone else out tonight, but there was no need to draw attention to herself just in case some creep was wandering around the cemetery at night. She took a long look around, then she knelt down in front of the dark stone.

"It really hit me today, when I went to go dance. I couldn't even get started, because when I was stretching I looked into the mirror. I... I really didn't like what I saw."

She sighed. Even though she was here by herself, it was hard to put her thoughts into words, to vocalize what had seared itself into her brain earlier today as she looked into those empty dark brown eyes in the dance studio mirror. "You know, at first I hated you," she admitted. "For leaving me to do all this shit by myself. But then I realized that I couldn't hate you, so I starting hating myself. But you know how that went, right? Jesus, I was here almost every time I got drunk.

"And don't start with trying to tell me not to hate myself, okay?" she said, raising her voice as she looked directly at the name carved into the dark granite. "It was my fault that you got killed. I left you when I caught you in bed with Jake at that party. I never gave you the chance to tell me that you had passed out and that he was pretty much _raping_ you because you couldn't fight back." She laughed once, bitter and without a trace of humor. "Yeah, the asshole admitted it to me finally. When he told me, I kicked him in the balls, then I hit him in the fucking face. He deserved more, but I was too messed up to do anything else except sit down and cry. And feel sorry for myself. I did that a lot, too."

Her bottom lip began to tremble as more unwanted memories of her past surfaced from the dark depths of her memory. "But I guess I did some shit to him that was worse, huh? At least he never knew about it; thank God for that. That was something I only ever told you about, Kase."

With the rain, Mikayla's tears were invisible to any observer that might be watching her, but she knew every single one that ran down her face by the sting each left behind, a ghostly trail that still burned like acid. "You know, when you told me that you were fucking furious at me for having the abortion, I had thought for just a second that you were passing judgment on me like everyone else in my goddamn life." But that wasn't why Kasey had been so mad.

"_Damn it, Mikki, you can be so fucking _stupid_ at times!" _

That was what Kasey had said right after she had found out. But she wasn't mad because of abortion being some sin or "immoral choice" or any bullshit like that. _No, that wasn't you, Kasey. _Instead, she had been mad simply because Mikayla hadn't told her before making that decision all by herself.

"_Mikki," she had said as she hugged Mikayla tightly, "we're gonna get through this, girl. Because I'm not letting you do this alone. And if you had come and told me before you went and did this, I wouldn't have let you do it, because I'd have been right here with you, to raise that baby. You'd never have had to do it alone, Mikki."_

"You tried to tell me, so many times," Mikayla said, sobbing softly. "But I was always either too busy chasing something else or just too fucking stupid to hear what you were trying to say to me. And now it's too late for me to tell you that—" She leaned forward and pressed her forehead against the wet, slick stone of the monument.

After crying for several minutes, she concentrated on catching her breath. It was still California, but it was late in the year and the nights had been noticeably cooler for the last week. While it wasn't cold enough to see her breath in front of her, it was definitely cool enough for a shiver to pass through Mikayla's increasingly soaked body.

"You know—" she started, but a sudden gasp made her words catch in her throat. She tipped her head back, letting the rain drops strike her directly on her face as she composed herself again. "I finally realize that this is why I hate Hannah Montana so much," she said, leaning her head forward to once again stare at the rivulets of water trickling down the dark granite headstone. "It's not so much that I hate her for being gay. That was never anything more than just a really convenient target to go after her. It's not her talent either, because I'd fucking kill to have her singing voice and her vocal range." No, it was much, much more simple than that.

"It's the fact that she has her best friend with her, and I don't."

It hurt to say out loud what she had finally understood, but in a way it felt good, almost like a release, much like she had to admit she had a problem with alcohol and drugs before she could ever truly get clean.

"I think that Hannah and I are a lot more alike than I ever realized, at least we were in the beginning. And maybe if I had a father who loved and supported me rather than beat and ra—"

_Don't go there, Mikki, not now. I'm barely holding on as it is._ She pushed past that hornets' nest of memories with force of will that came easier every time she drew it forth. "But I think I could have made it past that too," she said quietly. "If I had you with me like she has Lola with her. Whether we were just friends or turned into something more, I just..."

The tears and emotion overwhelmed her, and she sagged to the ground, sitting on her rear with a wet squelch. "I just need you with me, Kasey," she said through the sobs. "I just want my best friend back, goddammit!" she yelled up into the rain. _"GIVE HER BACK!"_ she screamed at the leaden gray sky, voice raw and throat burning against the strain. _ "GIVE HER BACK!"_ she cried again and again. Finally she slumped forward, curling up on the sodden ground, her strong voice reduced to a faint whisper lost amidst the patter of falling rain.

"Give her back, please."

**Author's Afterword:** It's really weird how this story adds and takes away from different plots as I write it down. I honestly had no intention to use Kesha in this story other than use one of her songs as the intro music for a chapter, but things just sort of built to use her as a logical link between Miley and Lilly's world and Mikayla's party world. I also didn't really want to make her some one-dimensional tramp, so I wrote her more like how I think she'd be in the Lileyverse. I suspect she's got more brains to her than she acts like in the mainstream world, too.

I really felt for Mikayla while I was writing this chapter. She can see the life she's built around her falling apart, and it's terrifying. Even since I started this story, I've been fascinated with how her career and Hannah's are like dark reflections of each other. How would Miley have turned out if Lilly had been the one killed early in her career, for instance? There have been some good stories exploring that very concept, but from what I could visualize in my 'verse, I think she'd be even worse off than Mikayla. **Cutflowers** has done some truly amazing work on this very subject, and I highly recommend reading **cf**'s Amissverse stories if you'd like an idea of just how devastating losing Lilly would be to Miley.

Okay, once again, please have patience with me. I think that Miley's new album has re-energized my writing, and hopefully Emily Osment's full album will fuel this power surge even more when it's released. Until then, hang in there. We're getting close to the end of this story. I love all of you, and thank you for coming along on this story with me. I'll see you soon!

Jo


	30. Chapter 30: Just a Step Away

**Author's Note:** Okay, consider yourself warned. Mikayla lets loose in this chapter, so be prepared for some particularly foul language ahead. This is also a long chapter, which is partly to blame for it taking so darn long to get finished.

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist or publication mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo K.

Chapter 30: Just a Step Away

_Now she found herself in the fast lane, living day to day_

_Turned her back on her best friendship and watched her family slip away_

_Just like a lost soul caught up in the Hollywood scene_

_All the parties and the limousines_

_Such a good actress, hiding all her pain_

_Trading her memories for fortune and fame_

_Just a step away from the edge of a fall_

_Caught between heaven and hell_

_Where's the girl I knew a year ago?_

_-_-Poison, "Fallen Angel"

The soft rustle of newspaper pages turning was accompanied by the lilting sound of humming as Miley Truscott sat on the back porch of her Malibu home, the morning ocean breeze caressing her face as it gently tossed her hair to and fro. She smiled as she looked down and saw the happy grin of her daughter Brooke as the infant took her own breakfast from her mother's left breast.

"I'm jealous," said Lilly Truscott as she slipped out the door onto the back porch, carrying a bowl of cereal and a glass of milk.

"And why's that?" Miley said slowly through the smile on her face, shading the morning sun with her free left hand.

"Because," Lilly said as she bent down to first kiss her daughter on the head and then her wife on the lips. "She gets to do that whenever she wants." She sat down at the small bamboo breakfast table next to her wife and daughter.

Miley smiled more broadly as she looked at her radiant wife while the sunlight painted Lilly's dark blonde hair several shades lighter. "So do you," she said smugly to her best friend.

"Yeah, but people tend to stare when I do it," Lilly replied, a sly grin on her face as she sipped her hot tea.

"That's 'cause you look hot when you do it."

"Mmm, I bet I do." Lilly reached across the small table and took her wife's hand, lightly rubbing the tip of her thumb across Miley's palm. The two of them sat in comfortable silence for several minutes, lost in their loving thoughts until Lilly's head jerked up and she caught Miley's eye. "Maybe we should get a bigger blanket. You know, to cover my head better."

When Miley sputtered in laughter, it sprayed across Brooke's head, eliciting a fussy cry from the growing baby. "Dang it," she said, taking her free hand out of Lilly's grasp and gently dabbing with a napkin at their daughter's cheek and temple. "That was your mommy's fault," she said playfully to Brooke as she looked sidelong at Lilly, who was trying her best not to laugh. "Yes, it was. So you make sure that next time you need to fill your diaper, you do it when she's holding you, okay?"

Lilly frowned. "That was fighting dirty," she said flatly.

In Los Angeles, the morning sun's rise into the sky had been carefully observed for several hours by Mikayla. She had come up to the patio set atop her Beverly Hills home before the first hints of pink peeked above the horizon to the east, and she had sat alone, lost in her thoughts, for the last three hours.

The dried tears on her face tugged ever so slightly as Mikayla tilted her head down to look at the picture she held in her left hand. It was a picture of her with Kasey, both girls smiling and hugging each other, taken just a week before her best friend had died. It was also the last picture that Kasey's mother had taken of either girl. Emilia Gomez had lost her parents when just a teenager and her husband shortly after Kasey was born. She had never been close to her older sister Vera, and having her only child cruelly ripped away from her at such a young age had proven to be a mortal spiritual wound. She had found Kasey's friend Mikayla an agent shortly before Kasey's death, and with early success of Mikayla's first single "If Cupid Had a Heart," it seemed that Mikayla's career was off to a promising start. Satisfied that Kasey's friend was going to be looked after, Emilia had taken two bottles of her sleeping pills and pain medicine, drank an entire bottle of scotch and went to bed, never to wake up.

Mikayla felt her tears start anew at the bitter memory. She had been angry that Emilia wouldn't return her calls, and her teenaged pride wouldn't let her go check on the woman who had been the closest anyone had ever come to being a mother to her. It had been five days before one of Emilia's neighbors called the police, and when Mikayla learned what had happened, she took all the feelings of regret and loss and pushed them as deep into her soul as she possibly could, walling them off where the pain would be minimal. She had to focus on her career, to make it big like she had promised herself, like she had promised Kasey, and mourning would only get in the way.

But what had she sacrificed along the way to her success? Her heart? Her feelings? Her very soul?

"It wasn't worth it," Mikayla said to herself, her voice dry and hoarse from crying all night. She looked up at the sky, at how the morning sun painted the sky with hues of red, orange and rose. It might have just been from all the pollutants in the air, but it was undeniably beautiful. She felt pangs of remorse stab into her heart, and briefly she wondered how many mornings she had blown off, too tired or hungover or high to just walk outside and take in the simple joy of being alive.

She shook her head and stood. No time for those regrets now. There was too much to get finished today, before the special meeting at Dyseni Records this evening. Vera Blaike had looked surprised yesterday when Mikayla had asked her to set up this meeting, but she had agreed to do so without any further questions. Mikayla hadn't bothered to tell Margot just yet, and that was something she was not looking forward to.

Margot Walters, however, might have been loud, arrogant, pushy and a heartless bitch, but stupid she was not. While Mikayla went back into her Beverly Hills home to get dressed, Margot was holding her own impromptu meeting in her Santa Monica home's office.

She had been uncharacteristically nervous the previous night and all morning. Her nervous pacing so far this morning had nearly worn the soles out of her Mephisto Abbie shoes before her potential client had arrived. She had both anticipated and dreaded this moment for years, and her heart pounded relentlessly in her chest as she sat at her modest cherry wood desk. "So," she said after several awkward seconds of silence. She glanced to the side, where the computer tech accompanying the prospective buyer stood, wordlessly examining the room with her eyes, almost invisible beneath the brim of her baseball cap. "Was it really necessary to bring her?" Margot asked, not really expecting an answer.

"Oh, absolutely."

The smile on Margot's face was forced as she said, "Why? I'm giving you the password to decrypt the hard drive with the files on it."

"You're not giving me anything. I'm _buying_ what you're _selling_."

"Well, you've got a point there," Margot said pleasantly, laughing slightly.

"And since I'm paying you a fucking fortune, I'll bring anybody I want with me. Unless you've decided that you're not interested, that is."

"NO!" Margot nearly jumped out of her seat, her arm and hand extended in front of her. "I'm still interested, I mean. In selling." In truth, Margot was well aware that there had been several parties interesting in obtaining what she was selling. However, this was by far the best deal, so she could put up with a few... eccentricities.

She picked up the black metallic external hard drive, hefting it once before reaching across the desk and placing it carefully at the desk's edge. "It's all on here. Pictures, scanned images, video... a little bit of everything. I think you'll be quite pleased, if I do say so myself. There's enough stuff on here to wreck her career ten times over."

"How's it encrypted?"

Margot turned to regard the tech who had just spoken. She had forgotten the woman was still there, she had been so quiet. But as Margot met her gaze, she felt a twinge of uneasiness. "Uh, BitLocker," she haltingly said. She opened one of the desk drawers and sifted through it briefly before retrieving a sealed envelope, small enough that it had probably been meant for a greeting card or invitation of some sort. "Here's the password," Margot said, placing the envelope atop the black Seagate hard drive. The only reply she received was a simple nod of the head from the other woman, who went back to looking around the room before walking over to the desk.

Margot looked up as the casually dressed technician leaned across the desk, inspecting Margot's work laptop closely. "Can I help you with something?" she asked the technician haughtily, irritated that the woman was encroaching on her personal space.

"Yeah, you can tell me how many other computers and external hard drives you have here," the smaller woman said. She was younger than Margot, that much was certain, but it was hard to tell if it was closer to five or fifteen years younger with the cap covering most of her reddish hair and face.

"And why would I tell you that?" countered Margot, her voice rising slightly.

"Can we just get this signed, please?" asked the third woman, still sitting across the desk from Margot but now leaning forward over the edge of the desk. Margot turned her attention to the papers being pushed across the desk to her.

"Is this..." she asked as she spread the two neatly typed pages apart.

"Stipulations for this... sale. I think you'll see that I'm willing to go slightly above the number we were discussing earlier."

Margot couldn't control her eyes widening as she saw the numbers written on the contract. "Slightly above?" she said aloud. "That's..."

"...Enough that there shouldn't be any bitching about the terms of this offer, I would think," the other woman said, drawing a quiet laugh from the computer tech still hovering too close for Margot's comfort. "So what exactly is this extra money buying me, you might be wondering?"

Rather than reply verbally, Margot began reading the two-page contract. However, her buyer kept talking as she tried to read.

"I'll tell you what it's buying me," the other woman said. "It's buying me your external hard drive with the files on it, the password to decrypt it, your desk computer here, your laptop computer, which is why I told you to bring it from your office, all your flash drives, all your other external hard drives, backup CDs, _everything_ that could possibly have another copy of those files."

Margot felt her stomach grow cold as she looked up. "That's not what we had agreed to earlier," she said, suddenly more nervous than she had been before this meeting.

"I realize that. That's why this-", she paused as she held up a cashier's check with quite a few zeroes visible on its face, "-is so much bigger than the figure we had agreed to earlier."

"I have appointments saved on those computer," Margot countered, shaking her head. "Phone numbers, contact information..."

"All of which will be moved onto flash drives or memory cards, your choice, and returned to you without us keeping any copies of that information. Plus you also agree to never disclose the terms of this deal or even the deal itself, under penalty of being forced to return the entire sum."

Margot thought briefly, considering her options. Her laptop she could care less about, but there were some other files on her home computer that she didn't want to lose—or, worse, for others to find. Still, those files had been encrypted and hidden, and those really weren't what this buyer was after, anyway. She just didn't want Margot to keep any other copies of the dirt on Mikayla, most likely to boost the value of what she was buying. And it _would_ serve the little bitch Mikayla right to get squeezed for all she was worth.

Margot smiled, sly like a viper ready to strike. After today, Mikayla's career would be over, one way or another. It was time to get out while what she was selling was most valuable.

"You've got a deal," Margot said, signing the contract and pushing it back across the desk.

Jen Kittrell smiled and handed the cashier's check for ten million dollars to Margot. "It's not been a pleasure doing business with you, Margot," Jen said, her own thin smile firmly in place as she spoke.

"Same here, Kittrell," Margot replied. "But I'll spend your bosses' money all the same," she added with a loud laugh.

After three hours searching Margot's home and collecting her home computer, two laptops, two external hard drives and a handful of flash drives and memory cards, Jen and her computer technician finally sat down in the sedan they had rented for this very purpose. "So how do we know that she doesn't have another copy of everything on her computer at her office?" Jen asked. "I don't trust that disgusting bitch any more than I can throw her, and I'm not _that_ fucking strong."

The woman sitting beside Jen in the front pulled the baseball cap off her head, shaking her medium-length red hair out before turning to look at Jen.

"Because," said Luanne with a smile, "I already checked it. She doesn't have anything on Mikayla on it. Not much of anything incriminating, either. Dyseni must do some serious monitoring of their network."

Jen smiled. "So you got into her office at Dyseni and checked her computer?" Luanne nodded. "And got past her password, I assume?" Another nod. "Do I really want to know how you did that?"

"Probably not," Luanne admitted. "It's better for both of us." She smiled, open and happy. "If that works for you."

Jen turned her attention back to the road as she started the car. "Fuck yeah, that works for me," she said as she shifted the car into gear. "How long to check the files?"

"Oh, I'll check the files on that hard drive as soon as I get back to my hotel," Luanne said. "Won't take much longer to check the flashies and cards, either. What'll take a while is combing through the rest of her computer plus those others for anything else she might have hidden on them."

"Well, let me know what we've got on Mikayla as soon as you can, okay?" Jen asked, heart still beating fast from the very expensive purchase she had just made. "I don't want this to blow up in our faces. If Margot's dumping her blackmail files on Mikayla, something big is about to go down. I just don't know who's going to be covered in shit when it's all over."

Luanne nodded. While Jen hadn't told her any details about her bosses being Hannah and Lola Montana, Luanne had pieced together their involvement in this without much difficulty. She did note that Jen was taking great care to not mention her bosses by name, so Luanne was taking similar precautions to not let slip that she already knew whom Jen worked for or that she knew Hannah and Lola were also Miley and Lilly. In fact, she hadn't even told her sister and sister-in-law that she was in town, since Jen had already stressed secrecy and discretion as paramount to this particular job. Miley had given her the heads up that Hannah and Lola's manager was probably going to be calling with a question about computers, but they had given Luanne the impression that she was more interested in buying a computer for her personal use. It had been a bit of a surprise when Luanne had found out the true purpose behind Jen's need for a computer expert. Still, the pay was quite good, it gave her a bit of a break from her regular IT job, and it gave her the chance to help her sisters out in a way that only she could. And it presented one more very cool puzzle to solve.

Mikayla spent most of the morning in postproduction for her newest video, making sure that the look reflected the more serious and reflective mood she had been going for with what would most likely be her last single, at least for Dyseni. Maybe for the entire music industry. Whatever Margot was up to, Mikayla had to assume that all her dirty laundry would be revealed to the public immediately after the meeting tonight. And when that happened, Mikayla's career would be over.

"Look good to you, Mikayla?" asked the video's director. He had treated Mikayla fairly and professionally during the entire video process, not just the filming but also the planning and postproduction work. It had been a very pleasant surprise to be treating like she actually knew what the fuck she was doing, and Mikayla hoped that his name wouldn't be hurt through association with her.

"Yeah, it looks great," she managed to say, her voice uncharacteristically dry.

"You okay?" he asked, looking at her with a touch of concern on her face.

"Yeah," she lied, nodding to buy herself a few seconds. "It just turned out so good that I'm, um, a bit emotional about it." _Well, that was true, at least._

His face softened a bit, and he gave her a reassuring smile. "Whoever this guy was, he must have been really special to you," he said. "I think all of us here have cried over this video at some point."

Mikayla's heart was pounding as she considered her words carefully. Truthfully, what more could being honest hurt her career at this point, at the end of things? "It, uh..." she began haltingly. "It... wasn't a guy. But yeah, she was really special to me. More special than I realized until it was... too late. Until she was gone."

There was a pregnant pause hanging between them for several seconds, then the director finally said, "Does the video say what you want it to say? Does it say what you _feel_, in your heart?"

Mikayla nodded, not breaking eye contact with the older man. "Yeah, it does. She'd be proud of it."

"Then you should be proud of it too," he said, standing up to shake her hand. "Screw your reputation, Mikayla, you did a damn good job on this video, going from planning to wrapped in less than a week. I'll work with you again anytime."

_You say that now._ But he meant it, she knew that. "Thanks," she said, shaking his hand and then spontaneously giving him a hug. "No matter what anyone else ever says about me, it's nice knowing that at least one person in this town knows that there's some talent and professionalism beneath the spoiled bitch exterior. Thank you for that." She let him go and then turned and walked quickly from the room, holding her tears in until she was safely outside.

Mikayla didn't remember much about the drive to Malibu. Numbly she made her way to Miley's and Lilly's house, uneasy about what reception awaited her there. As she turned onto the street fronting their house, she saw their pearlescent Tesla S3 sedan sitting peacefully in the driveway. She stopped just past the driveway, throwing the rumbling Aston Martin Vanquish into reverse as she backed into the drive. It was a habit she had picked up for when she might have to make a quick getaway, whether from a pack of paparazzi or a sex partner.

She walked quickly to the front door, her oversize sunglasses concealing a significant amount of her face. She rang the doorbell twice before knocking; still, no one came to the door.

_They're probably in there watching, with Miley trying to hold Lilly back to keep her from paying me back for what I did to their friend Hannah. It'd serve me right to have her kick my ass. I probably wouldn't even fight back right now._

She turned around and started to walk back to her car when the sound of laughter and squeals wafted along the salty ocean breeze to her ears. She turned and followed the sound, peeking around the corner of the house to see a fairly large deck attached to the back side of the house. She carefully made her way around the rear sidewalk, stopping behind the cover of some large landscaping plants as she looked at the open beach leading from the house to the ocean.

Lilly and Miley were playing in the ocean, with Lilly's blonde hair nearly gleaming in the bright sunlight. She was bent over, splashing water up at Miley, who was either trying to shield herself with their baby or get the little girl wet. Maybe both. Mikayla couldn't help but sadly smile at how happy they looked, taking time out of their day to play with each other. Taking time to appreciate each other. _I don't deserve that_, she thought bitterly. _But I really fucking WANT it, and I'll probably never have it._

She watched the three Truscotts play on the beach for a few more minutes, then she made her retreat when it seemed like they were ready to return to the house. Mikayla hustled around the sidewalk, falling into her car's cockpit and firing up the engine. She was careful not to spin the tires, but she still zipped out of the driveway as fast as she dared without breaking the Michelin tires loose. As she pulled out onto the street, she gunned the engine, launching the Vanquish past a small green car approaching her.

"Who was that?" asked Sarah Sweet as she turned into Lilly's and Miley's driveway. Her girlfriend Cassie Hughes had unbuckled her seatbelt and turned completely around in her seat trying to get a better view of the low-slung car speeding away from them.

"Couldn't really tell because of those sunglasses, but I think..." Cassie said, letting her voice trail off as Sarah brought the older Prius hybrid to a stop. "I think it was Mikayla," she said, looking into her partner Sarah's bright green eyes.

"Really?" Sarah said, incredulous. "What in the world would someone like her be doing at Miley's and Lilly's house?"

"I'm not sure," Cassie said, her thoughts racing. _But I can guess it's not good._

As the two of them got out of their car, Miley, Lilly and Brooke came around the side of the house. "Hey ya'll!" Miley said, waving. "Thought we heard a car up here."

Lilly nodded as she carried Brooke over to their friends. Upon seeing Cassie's short but bright red hair, Brooke began to burble happily and reach for the tempting tresses. "She really loves your hair, Cass," Lilly said with a giggle as she handed Brooke over to Cassie.

"Yeah, her and Sarah both. But Sarah pulls it a bit harder than Brooke does."

"Cass!" Sarah yelled, a look of shock on her face. "You're not supposed to say stuff like that in public, baby!"

Cassie playfully rolled her eyes before leaning over to kiss Sarah on the lips. "This is Miley and Lilly, remember, Sar? Our two friends who'll talk orgasms and the positions they came in over brunch?"

"Hey, at least it's not boring conversation," Miley said, her face a bit red. "And we didn't know you two were up that time when we were trying to sound like each other's O-voice."

Cassie smiled and tickled Brooke's chin, getting another laugh from the baby. "It's okay, isn't it little Brookie? We all know your mommies are crazy about each other, don't we?"

"There was another car pulling out when we got here," Sarah said. "It looked big and expensive, like a rolling carbon emitter." She shuddered slightly at the unpleasant imagery. "Cassie said it looked like Mikayla," she added, leaving a question unasked. "But that just sounds weird. Why would some big star like her be out here?"

Miley and Lilly didn't even look at each other before Lilly replied, "Well, we all met a few years ago when we still went to Seaview. She showed back up a few months ago and said she wanted to be my friend, but then she hurt our friend Hannah on _American Gladiators_. I told her to get lost. Not sure why she'd be coming around now." Now Lilly did turn to look at Miley, and the look of concern in her eyes was matched by the same glint in Miley's. Miley nodded so slightly as to be imperceptible in response. Well, imperceptible to anyone but Lilly, who blew Miley a light kiss in response. Phone calls would be made as soon as the chance presented itself; until then, it was time to catch up with their friends.

"Mikayla! Did you have something you wanted to talk to me about before the meeting tonight?"

Mikayla stood outside the door to Vera Blaike's office, feeling apprehensive about what she was going to tell the one person who had supported her the whole time she had been at Dyseni Records. "Yeah," she finally said. "But I'm not sure you're going to like hearing it."

Vera motioned for the young singer to step inside, closing the door to her office behind them as she quickly scanned the hallway for any sign of Margot or her brother Lonnie. "Alright," Vera said as she walked over to where Mikayla was sitting, taking a seat on the leather couch close to where her company's premier artist was lightly perched. "What is it?"

Mikayla looked up, meeting Vera's inquisitive eyes with resolute ones. "I'm quitting," she said finally.

After a stunned pause, Vera said with a barely audible voice, "Quitting? What, Dyseni?"

"All of it," Mikayla said, her voice low but firm. "Dyseni, Margot, music, singing, all of it. I did anything I had to do to become famous, and along the way I sold my soul to that fucking bitch Margot. I kept telling myself I was doing it for Kasey, but Kasey wouldn't have wanted the bitch I became. I know I sure as hell don't want her, or even like her."

Vera sat in silence for a moment, trying to process what she was hearing. "But... You've grown up over this last month or two, Mikayla. You've shown signs of becoming a real artist, not just acting like a spoiled brat."

"Gee, thanks," Mikayla said with a sad smile on her face. "But you're right, that's exactly what I've acted like for fucking _years_ now. And it's ending tonight."

"Then end it by standing up to Margot in that board room, dammit!" Vera said, trying to keep her voice low but not having much success. "Take your career back and let yourself be the girl Kasey was in love with!" Vera gasped when she realized the truth that had inadvertently slipped out, but the words had been said; there could be no taking them back. "Let yourself become the woman she wanted to spend the rest of her life with, even if life took her away from you," Vera said slowly, not trying to play the moment for melodrama but instead for what both of them knew to be the truth.

Tears slid down Mikayla's cheeks as she looked at her best friend's aunt. She slowly shook her head. "That woman isn't the singer that the world knows, Vera. I don't know if I can ever live up to being that person, but I know where I have to start, and it isn't here." She looked out at the dimming light outside the window, offering a spectacular view of the lights of Los Angeles. "And there's the matter of Margot's blackmail material."

"What?" Vera asked, her mind reeling from another surprise. "What did you say? She's _blackmailing_ you?"

Mikayla nodded, looking down for a moment. She was ashamed that she had ever let herself be put in this position by Margot; she thought she had been so careful, so meticulous in her planning... but somehow Margot had known about her getting pregnant, all the while collecting evidence to use against the then-teenaged singer, including a copy of her medical chart both from her regular gynecologist and from the highly discreet private clinic Mikayla had used for the abortion.

"Kasey had wanted me to keep the baby," Mikayla said, now looking back at Vera. "After she found out. But it was too late. I didn't tell her until after I had..." She ran fingers through her long hair, the memories stinging as badly as they always did whenever she thought back to that time. "Until after it was done." Briefly, Mikayla considered telling Vera just who the father had been. But that had been another secret she had shared only with Kasey, and as long as Jake Ryan was alive, Mikayla would never give him the satisfaction of knowing he had managed to hurt her any more than he already had.

Vera reached out and carefully tucked a long strand of curls back behind the singer's left ear. "I didn't... I didn't know about any of that. Kasey never told me." Vera pondered the damning secret Mikayla had just confessed to her, and she wondered what else Margot might have against Mikayla. There had been plenty of rumors swirling over the years where Mikayla had dropped off the map. "She loved you since she was ten," she said, her tone of voice soothing and inviting, a voice quite suitable for sharing family secrets. "I kept trying to get her to tell you, but she said she couldn't take the chance of losing you."

"I..." Mikayla thought, her thoughts whirling around inside her head. "I... don't know if her telling me back then would have been a good thing... or a bad thing. I really don't know how I would've reacted."

Vera's smile was knowing, and she didn't press Mikayla further. "How would you have reacted now?" she asked softly.

Now Mikayla smiled; faint but obvious. "I'd have jumped in her arms and asked her to marry me that very same day." Then the smile faded, replaced with a more somber look. "But that's just a hope that'll never come true, and we both know it." She looked directly into Vera's eyes, the same deep hazel that Kasey's had been so many years ago. "What I _can_ do is to take this evil, spiteful, angry, cutthroat bitch that I've become and throw her away, someplace so far away that she'll never be able to hurt anyone ever again. And then I'll spend all the time I have left on this earth trying to be someone that Kasey really _would_ have been proud of." She reached into her purse and pulled out a manila envelope, handing it to Vera carefully and not letting go just yet. "Don't open this until after the board meeting, Vera. Can you promise me that?"

"Yes," Vera said quietly, a single tear escaping her eyelashes' grip and slithering down her right cheek. "I promise."

Mikayla released the envelope and leaned forward. She hugged Vera desperately, letting her tears flow through tightly squeezed eyelids and bury themselves in the older woman's dress shirt. They held each other in quiet support for long seconds, neither wanting to be the one to let go first. Finally Mikayla pulled back, giving Vera what she hoped was a confident smile. "Goodbye, Vera. Thanks for trying to look out for me. And thanks for finally helping to open my eyes to what a fucked-up mess I had let my life become."

And then she was gone, stepping around Vera Blaike and walking out of the large office. She didn't look back. Not once.

The elevator ride down two floors was a blessing, because Mikayla had the elevator entirely to herself. _Focus, Mikki. You've got to be ice cold for another fifteen minutes, then you can fall apart as loudly and as ugly as you want. But don't give these pricks the satisfaction of letting them see it._

As the floor indicator dinged softly, Mikayla swallowed and stepped off the elevator. She stood in the hallway for a brief moment, taking the time to understand that her career was well and truly over. Margot would make sure of that, if she hadn't already put things into motion. But Mikayla had already invested a substantial deal of her money safely away from Margot's grasp, with most of the accounts and how she wanted them handled listed in the manila folder she had handed to Vera just minutes ago. She knew that Vera would carry out what she wanted done with them, just in case something were to happen to Mikayla before the night was over.

Mikayla shuddered. She had already considered the possibility of violence on Margot's part tonight. _I could __totally see the spiteful bitch stabbing or shooting me before the meeting is over._ But where the prospect of such a death might have made her quiver in fear just a few days ago, the Mikayla standing just steps away from that impending confrontation instead smiled coldly. _Well, if she does pull some shit like that, I can guarantee I'll die with my fucking hands around her big throat. _

Standing on the brink of her final act as Dyseni's top recording artist, Mikayla felt a kind of peace inside her body, the peace that comes with the understanding that the end is near—and accepting it utterly. "Showtime," she said to herself as she pushed open the boardroom door.

A full room turned to look at the newcomer, with a mixture of smiles and glares shown to Mikayla in greeting. She ignored the hellos and other comments directed her way, instead walking to the podium beside the large LED television mounted on the conference room wall. She pulled her small laptop out of her purse and set it on the flat part of the podium's surface. She worked without any concern for the murmurs spreading around the board room, only looking up once to see Vera entering the room and then quickly taking a seat at the closest end of the table.

Once she had the computer hooked up to the input port for the television, she checked to make sure she had her media player program ready to go. Satisfied, she stepped out from behind the podium.

The whispers began to fade as Mikayla approached the large table dominating the board room. She leaned forward, resting both her hands on the mahogany wood, polished to a glassy sheen. She smiled her most cruel, gleeful smile as she calmly said, "I quit."

There was only a second of silence before raised voices filled the room. Mikayla stood, crossing her arms defiantly as she let a half-dozen executives yell at her as well as each other before one voice finally became loud enough to overpower the others. _ "ENOUGH!"_

Everyone turned to look at Vera Blaike, whose face was uncharacteristically red as she sat straight as an arrow in her seat. "And why do you want to quit, Mikayla?" Vera asked, her voice slightly flustered.

"Remember, you're still under contract with us for three more albums over the next two years," said Lonnie Walters, sweat already dappling his forehead. "And we have the option to extend it another two years or two albums, too."

"Oh, I don't think you'll be doing that, Lonnie," Mikayla said, her voice oozing with confidence. She climbed up onto the large table, her shoes clicking on the slick surface as she walked its length, stopping right in front of Lonnie. She knelt down, letting her knees splay apart in an gesture both sexual and overtly dominating. The fact that she was wearing dress pants did nothing to lessen the primal signal she was sending. She smiled coldly as she added with a teasing voice, "Will you, now?"

When it obvious that no verbal reply was coming, Mikayla stood smoothly, walking atop the table back to its head, where she sat and then slid off, landing lightly on her feet with a dancer's grace. "Okay," she said, "you're going to release me from my contract."

"And why in God's name would we do that?" spit the current board chairman, someone whom either Miley or Lilly would have instantly recognized had they ever seen his face or his name. But he had been careful to conceal his presence since seizing control of Dyseni Records in a carefully planned buyout over a year ago, paving the way for his attempt to destroy the career of Hannah Montana, a figure he despised both for what she represented and for his embarrassment at her hands over two years ago.

William Harris.

Mikayla had never bothered to learn his name, much less his antagonistic history with Hannah and Lola Montana. She _had_ slept with his son Trey after a release party, though.

She turned to face him directly. "Because I don't like the terms in it," she said, as if it were so simple that everyone should have understood already.

"Young lady," Harris said, his body visibly shaking with anger, "I will see to it that your career in music is over. OVER!" He took a few seconds to regain some semblance of control, then he continued. "You will _not_ be released from your contract. You will _not_ retain any control over your music. You will not ever work in THIS TOWN AGAIN! I will _personally_ destroy your career and any shred of respectability you still possess!"

Mikayla held his baleful glare for several seconds before she sweetly asked, "Finished?" Not giving him a chance to reply, she lifted her gaze to scan the entire board room as she said, "You see, threats don't bother me tonight." She flicked her gaze back down to Harris. "My career is already fucked, so your threats don't mean _shit_ to me, old man." She stared into his eyes as she added, "Do your fucking worst. Oh, and your son likes a finger or two up his ass before he cums. Really turns him the fuck on." She winked at Harris, who leaped out of his chair and took two steps toward Mikayla before he was grabbed by another executive.

"Ooooh, struck a nerve, did I?" Mikayla cooed, relishing the sight of Dyseni's CEO totally out of control. "Maybe daddy likes it that way, too, hm?"

"You're an uncouth whore!" spit Harris, flecks quite visibly flying from his lips. "A no-talent... SKANK!" The derogatory slang sounded quite unnatural coming from his mouth, and Mikayla couldn't help but laugh once at how ridiculous the scene had become.

"Well, I've got some talent, so _that_ one's wrong," she replied calmly, hearing a quickly muffled single laugh come from somewhere down the table. "Now sit the fuck down!" she yelled, pointing at Harris's empty seat. "Because you're gonna want to hear this. Well, see it and hear it."

She walked back to the podium. She slid the cursor to the file she wanted, double-clicking the trackpad button to start the video playing.

As the high-definition picture of a naked Mikayla atop Lonnie Walters filled the television screen, the room erupted in shouts and raised voices. The angle clearly showed the two of them in Mikayla's bed, with the camera set diagonally in relation to the bed, giving an extremely clear picture of Mikayla aggressively riding the much older man as they had sex.

"I look pretty good from that angle, don't I?" Mikayla asked the board after nearly two minutes of the hardcore sex video. The voices had faded into stunned silence by then, and her voice carried clearly throughout the room. "I've got lots of these, with several different positions and camera angles to choose from. Oh, here's a good part coming up," she said, sliding the volume controls up much higher.

"_Are you gonna get me a better percentage for my next album, Lonnie?"_ the Mikayla in the video asked, tossing her long hair back over her shoulder to prevent it obscuring her face. _"Since I'm fucking you and sucking your dick?"_

"_Yeah, baby,"_ replied the video Lonnie Walters, his voice flush with lust. _"Lonnie's gonna take good care of his little Mikki as long as she takes good care of me!"_

Video Mikayla looked directly into the camera and winked, biting her bottom lip in a feral smile. _"And you'll get me a better office? And a better dance studio? I just have to keep having sex with you?"_

"_Yeah, yeah,"_ moaned Video Lonnie, his eyes clenched shut as he thrust upward again and again, trying to keep pace with the energetic woman astride him.

Mikayla hit the pause button, freezing the video on a particularly clear still of her grinding her body down onto her partner. She looked around the room, relishing the look of shock on Margot's face more than anything else. "THAT'S sexual harassment," she said calmly. "In HD, too!"

She looked back down at Harris, who looked like he was about to lay a square egg. "That'll make a good headline, won't it? '_Pop star coerced into sex games with Dyseni Records executive in control of her career!'_ Wonder what that'll do to your stock, asshole?"

Even with the knowledge that she was committing career suicide, Mikayla couldn't help but feel a glow of selfish pride as she savored having every eye, every breath, every heartbeat in the room focused on her and her alone. She was a born performer, and tonight she was _performing_, by God, like she never had before.

Foolish? Sure.

Masochistic? Probably.

Captivating? Without a doubt.

Mikayla made a show of looking at her neatly buffed and polished nails, a shiny platinum tonight. "So," she finally said, "Here's how it's going to go. I'm done. No more records, no more singles, no more tours or appearances."

"I will not be—"

"Shut him up!" snapped Vera, gesturing at William Harris. "Getting angry isn't accomplishing anything here. William, after you've had time to cool the hell off, you can resume being CEO. Right now I'm officially ignoring you and your bullshit temper, and as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, I've got the authority to do so." Vera turned to look at Mikayla; she hoped that no one could notice how badly her heart was pounding and how close she was to passing out. "Done," she said to Mikayla. "What else?"

"Dyseni stops any and all use of my name or likeness. All rights revert back to me, immediately."

"Royalties stay the same," Vera said quickly. "Dyseni keeps the share we've always gotten from your music sales and airplay."

"That's fine," Mikayla said with a slow nod. "I get to keep any gifts that Dyseni has already given to me, no strings attached. I've already paid for my house and cars, but I want to make sure that you don't have some fucking clause that lets the company repossess everything or some shit like that."

Vera nodded. "And in return, we get all files of that video and any more like it."

"You can have them, but I keep one in a safe location. Just in case Dyseni ever tries to go back on its word."

"I don't like that, but I suppose you're not budging on that point. Okay. But in return, you agree to no new records deals, no tours, no paid appearances or performances as a singer whatsoever, and no new singles or albums for five years. We'll allow a few exceptions provided all proceeds from a performance or song go entirely to charity." Vera smiled sadly. She hated to have to do this to Mikayla after everything the young singer had been through, but she had a duty to every employee at her company as well. "You wanted out, Mikayla. This'll get you well and truly out."

Mikayla shook her head quickly. "Okay, fine. I do want out of this fucking business, and I've got enough to live on for a long damn time." Which was true. While nowhere in the league of Hannah Montana's, Mikayla's royalties were significant, bringing in a comfortable sum that had only swelled over the last year.

Vera turned to a woman who appeared to be in her thirties, who was furiously typing on a computer. "Are you getting this down, Maxine?" As the assistant nodded in affirmation, Vera looked back to Mikayla. "We're going to type this up, run it by legal, who we've got here tonight, and then we'll sign it right here."

"That works for me," replied Mikayla flatly. "I'm sure I won't be welcome here again after tonight. Okay. Next, I want Margot fired."

"It'll be my pleasure. Margot, you're fired. Get out."

"I have some things that I—"

"Security will escort you out right now. I'll have someone box your things up and send them to your residence."

Mikayla cheerily added, "If they can find the rock you crawled out from under."

Margot's head whipped around faster than Mikayla had thought possible as she turned to regard the singer. "Listen, you little spoiled brat—"

"No, Margot, YOU listen!" Mikayla said hotly. "For eight goddamn years you've managed every aspect of my life, and you've done a shitty job of it!"

"I made you a fucking star, missy!" Margot yelled back, face turning crimson.

"No, you made me a fucking _mess!"_ Mikayla shot back, raising her own voice to match Margot's volume.

Margot paused before an oily smile spread across her face. "You did that to yourself, you arrogant little bitch. And you deserve everything that's coming to you."

Mikayla was trembling inside at the venom in Margot's voice, but she held her ground. "Yeah, I probably do," she said defiantly. "But you won't be there to gloat over it, because you're done in this town too."

As two plainclothes security personnel moved to stand behind her, Margot glanced at them with disdain before she slowly walked along the length of the table. She kept walking until she was two feet away from Mikayla, leading the security men to reach out to lightly touch her arms. But she made no move toward Mikayla, instead she just glared daggers at her client.

"By the way, Margot, you're fired," Mikayla said. "Just to make it official from me as well."

Margot spit in Mikayla's face, the wetness striking the singer on the nose, cheek and mouth. "I've wanted to do that for eight years, you stupid fucking twat," she sneered.

Mikayla continued to hold Margot's stare, deliberately not wiping her face. Suddenly her right arm shot up and forward as her fist slammed into Margot's nose with the wet crunch of snapping cartilage. Margot blinked three times, her expression indicating astonishment at what had just happened, then a rivulet of blood surged from both nostrils right before she covered her nose with both hands and shrieked loudly.

"Well, I've been wanting to do _that_ for eight years," Mikayla said loudly, "and it was worth every motherfucking _SECOND!"_ She looked at the closest security guard. "Get her big ass out of here," she said curtly. "She can't get out of my sight fast enough."

As Margot was guided out of the boardroom, Mikayla turned to look once again at Vera Blaike. "So do we have a deal?" she asked confidently.

"I believe we do," the older woman replied.

"Wait," Mikayla said, cursing at herself internally for nearly forgetting. "I just finished postproduction on a video this morning. I want it released. I don't care if I get anything for it or not, but I want it in circulation."

Vera's face was blank as she asked, "Why do you want it to get played so badly?"

"Because it's about someone very... special to me," Mikayla said quietly.

The silence and lack of venom immediately told Vera just whom that special someone was. "Alright. I guarantee you that video will be played. And since you finished it this morning, you'll still get paid for it, plus the royalties from its airplay."

Within minutes the separation agreement was finished. Mikayla and Vera finalized a few remaining minor points before the contract was printed, then it was ready for their signatures. Mikayla signed the three copies of the document with no hesitation. As Vera put her name on each document, the legal department notarized them immediately.

Vera slid a copy of the separation agreement across the table to Mikayla. "There you go, Mikayla," she said, fighting to keep her voice steady.

Mikayla reached across the table and lightly grasped Vera's hand. "Thank you," she said politely, giving the older woman a smile. She stood, giving a last look around the spacious boardroom and its multiple occupants before turning and walking out of the room.

She stopped in the hall and looked at the large framed picture of her on the wall next to the boardroom. It had been placed there when she first signed with Dyseni over a year ago, replacing the picture of Dyseni's previous premiere artist, Hannah Montana. She turned back toward the open door to the boardroom and loudly said, "And somebody take this damn picture of me off the wall out here!" as she pointed at the oversized print. "I don't work here any more," she said in a more controlled voice, allowing herself to smile as she walked away from Dyseni Records.

Miley and Lilly were getting ready for bed when Lilly heard her phone beep a single time, indicating a text message. Miley was getting Brooke's pajamas on, so Lilly finished brushing her teeth and picked up her phone to check the message. As she read the succinct text, a worried expression crossed her face. She looked at her face in the mirror for a moment, then she hurried down the hall, keeping her steps light to prevent any noise that might startle Brooke or Miley. She quickly descended the stairs and crossed the living room with just a few strides, taking mere seconds to unlock the front door and step outside, closing the door behind her quietly.

Jen Kittrell was standing on the front porch, a light jacket keeping the night's breeze at bay. She didn't say anything at first. She and Lilly simply looked at each other, both of them at once excited and apprehensive that this moment had come.

Lilly spoke first, her voice low and measured. "I'm sorry for ever asking you to do this, Jen."

"No, you're not. And I'm not sorry I did it." Jen's voice was neither angry or judgmental, and Lilly was glad for that.

Lilly nodded, understanding exactly what Jen meant. "You're right. I'm not sorry for asking you to do this, because it's protecting Miley."

Jen raised her right arm to offer a sealed envelope. Lilly carefully took it, lightly shaking it to feel a small object slide around inside.

"SD card," Jen said. "It's got everything I've pulled together so far, and there might be more coming."

Lilly lifted her gaze from the envelope to her friend and business manager. "Is it enough?" she finally asked.

"To ruin her career?"

"Yeah."

"Oh yeah. From just the little bit that I saw, there's enough on there to ruin her whole fucking _life_."

Lilly felt a chill slither down her spine, and she immediately knew that Miley would have felt it too. "I need to go back inside," she said. "Miley'll know that something's going on now, and I need to let her see this." Lilly gave Jen a hug, and surprisingly her normally reserved friend hugged her back.

"This was expensive," Jen whispered into Lilly's ear. "Really fucking expensive. I'm sorry."

Lilly shook her head. "I told you that I didn't care about that, Jen, back when I first asked you to do this. And I still don't care about how much it cost."

"It's not spending the damn money, Lilly. You two can afford it easily. What I'm pissed about is who I had to pay to get this."

Lilly wiped tears away as she smiled despite the emotions stirred up inside her. "You'll get over it," she said playfully. "Now get your butt home to your husband. It's late."

Jen gave Lilly a smile that revealed how relieved she was for this particular duty to be over. "Go give your wife and baby a goodnight kiss for me, Lilly. They're awful damn lucky to have someone like you watching over them."

"Funny," Lilly said as Jen stepped off the porch, "I was just thinking the same thing about us being lucky to have someone like you watching over us."

"Night, Lilly."

"Have a good night yourself, Jen."

Lilly watched Jen get into her car, then she turned and quietly slipped back inside. It was no surprise to see Miley sitting on the couch, her bare legs crossed as she sat in quiet vigilance in just a soft pink Supergirl Skate Jam t-shirt, eyes boring a hole into her wife. "Okay, whatever that was about had better be good for you to slip outside without so much as telling me," Miley said, her voice sounding somewhere between surprised and hurt.

Lilly walked over to the couch and sat down, laying her bare left leg across Miley's crossed ones. Even with the tension, both women felt their bodies shudder at the sensation of smooth, hot skin on skin. Lilly took Miley's hands as she softly spoke, "Do you remember last winter, when we were at your Mamaw's? We were talking, and I told you that I needed to tell you something, and you said that you trusted me and that I didn't have to tell you right then."

"I said that I knew you'd tell me when the time was right," Miley replied, nodding. "Yeah, I remember." The tenseness in her body began to fade slightly as she looked at the envelope Lilly was holding.

"The time's right," Lilly said with a grim expression, using her index finger to tear the envelope open.

It was several hours later and several miles away in Los Angeles that Luanne stepped out of the shower and toweled off. She wrapped the towel around her hair and slipped into her silk nightshirt as she crossed the motel room and sat down at the desk where she had Margot's home computer hooked up to one of her own laptops. "So what have you found for us, baby?" Luanne said affectionately to the laptop she had named Babydoll, giving its white casing a gentle pat. "Did you get that nasty encryption broken yet?"

Luanne had noticed a large chunk of hard drive space on Margot's computer that was occupied by something, but there seemed to be no way to access it. It took her just a few minutes to confirm that the unaccounted-for hard drive space was an invisible file, and it had taken slightly more to find a way to make the file or files visible again. But cracking the encryption she had discovered protecting those files was going to take significantly longer, so she had copied the files on the external hard drive that Margot's password had unlocked onto the memory card she had given Jen earlier, along with what files she found unencrypted in the "Mikayla" folder on Margot's home computer. All of the files on the external drive and the unencrypted Mikayla files on Margot's home computer matched, and that was what had troubled Luanne.

She could completely understand Margot encrypting the files on the external hard drive. She had probably stored it somewhere besides her home, and not encrypting the files would have been a foolish risk if they had been kept in a place where others could conceivably have access to that external hard drive. But Margot's computer had been in her house, unconnected to the Internet or a wireless network, with its own password and encryption limiting anyone's access. Once past the initial password to log into Windows, Margot obviously hadn't felt any need to encrypt her blackmail files on Mikayla further.

So what the hell _had_ she taken the time not only to encrypt, but to hide in an invisible file?

That was what had kept Luanne working on that block of encrypted files for the last thirteen hours, first trying Margot's passwords to try and break the encryption. When that had failed, she had begun trying passwords based on Margot's personal information that a typical user might use. After that had failed, she had begun using some of the toolbox programs she had acquired through her job back in Tennessee with the Department of Energy—and given that her job was computer network security analyst for one of the United States' premier nuclear research facilities and all that entailed, she had quite a frightening toolbox of programs indeed.

As she called back up the window for one of her nastier can opener programs she had left running for the last few hours, she noted that it seemed to have stopped after just a few hours. Annoyed, she nearly clicked the button to restart the program before she realized why it had stopped. It had broken the encryption.

Luanne examined the newly discovered password key, nearly laughing out loud at how simple it had been. "QueenMargot," she said to herself. "Seriously? I mean, you go to all the trouble of hiding and encrypting this shit, just to use an eleven-character letters-only code. You don't deserve to get ten million dollars, you moron."

She was still marveling at the dichotomy between Margot's precautions and her rudimentary password when she clicked on the first file, simply named "Vid01." It was lengthy at just over 300Mb, and she took a quick glance to see that there were several more video files, around a dozen, as well as probably twice that many JPG and RAW image files.

"Jen Kittrell, if this is a webcam video of Margot masturbating, I swear I'll drive to your house and throw this computer through your bedroom window," Luanne swore to herself. She sighed and double-clicked the file, launching her KMPlayer to play the file.

It took Luanne a few seconds to process what she saw as the video played. It took significantly longer for her to grasp just exactly what the images she was watching meant, but when she did make the connection, she felt her heart nearly stop. "Oh sweet Jesus," she said with a voice so faint that it surprised her to hear it. She watched for another minute before clicking the playback bar at the bottom of the player, advancing the video forward by several minutes, then doing it again. With less than a minute remaining in the video, she had seen enough.

Her skin was crawling as she tried to close the media player program. She was trembling so badly that it took three attempts to click the small X in the upper right corner; when the video disappeared, she was shivering. It took a minute for her to compose herself before she picked up her cell phone. She didn't trust herself to remember Jen's number at this point, so she called up her recent calls list and scrolled down to select it from them. She numbly hit the Send button, then she held the phone to her ear as she waited for Jen to pick up.

After three rings, a sleepy voice answered, _"Who the fu—"_

"Jen, it's Luanne," Luanne said quickly, interrupting a potentially impressive tirade. She ran her free hand over her sweating forehead, idly wiping the perspiration on her bathrobe. "I found some hidden files on that computer from today," she said, not wanting to be too specific over the phone. " I finally cracked the encryption on them a few minutes ago."

"_Okay..."_ Jen said slowly with a poorly suppressed yawn. _"Jesus, Luanne, it's nearly three in the morning!"_

Luanne swallowed, still slightly in shock. "Yeah, I know," she replied, unable to get the images she had just watched out of her mind. Her eyes flickered back to the many files yet to be examined, and she shuddered again involuntarily.

"Jen, this shit just got serious."

**Author's Afterword:** Again, I'm not giving up on this story. Never have, never will. But things just keep getting more bizarre in real life. I'm doing my best, I promise. I'm thinking that there'll be two more chapters in this story; however, I like the number 33 more than I do 32, so I might try to find a way to make it three more chapters. I've already got the basic storyline for the next story in my series going, but I'm trying to not think too much about it just yet until this mammoth story is all wrapped up. As always, I'll post the next chapter as soon as possible. Having three daughters playing soccer in different age groups at different fields and different times makes for a really busy Saturday, in case you were wondering. Add two practices a week for each of them, with one Monday and Thursday, a second Tuesday and Friday, and the third Tuesday and Thursday, and you've got a week that's pretty much spoken for. Oh, and the practices are all at different fields, too. Yeah, we've been doing the soccer moms thing. It's a huge time drain, but we both love watching them play and exercise.

Thanks for reading, and I'll see you soon!

Jo


	31. Chapter 31: Sisters in Arms

**Author's Note:** I normally don't like to start a chapter with an apology, but I owe it to everyone. The last three months have dealt some serious health issues to one of my daughters and to me as well. Things are doing well for both of us at this point, but she in particular still has some recovery ahead. I'm just glad that she's going to recover and that things are looking up at this point.

This should be the penultimate chapter for this story. I still have plans to continue my entire series, but no time frame at the moment. I did take advantage of the last three months to come up with a most interesting subplot for either the sixth or seventh story, and it's got me eager to write it. Right now, though, I'm going to focus on this chapter, a shorter final chapter to wrap up this story, than a small surprise if I can get it written before long.

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist or publication mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo K.

Chapter 31: Sisters in Arms

_Now the sun's gone to hell and the moon's riding high_

_Let me bid you farewell, every man has to die_

_But it's written in the starlight and every line on your palm_

_We're fools to make war on our brothers in arms_

-Dire Straits, "Brothers in Arms"

Mikayla turned off the engine of her Aston Martin Vanquish once it was in its proper place in her massive garage. She switched off the lights and simply sat in the dark for a few minutes, content to listen to the pleasant tinkles of the huge engine block cooling echoing inside the otherwise still space. She closed her eyes and tried to relax, even though she knew it was a futile gesture.

_No way could I relax now, not after that shit with Dyseni._ She shuddered as a thought came surging out of the depths of her subconscious, forcing its way into her thoughts with a suddenness that was both insistent and frightening.

_I could make those bad thoughts go away_, it called out to her, its eerie yet familiar voice sending shivers of terror across her skin.

Mikayla opened the door and jumped out of her car, nearly slamming into the Bentley Mulsanne next to the Vanquish in her haste to get away. She grabbed the Vanquish's door and swung it closed, then she stumbled through the dim garage to the interior door leading into her house. The silence of the garage was no longer comforting.

Several miles away in Malibu, the ringing of a telephone broke slumber's hold over two young women, snuggled together in their bed. A hand slowly emerged from beneath the covers, fumbling for the cell phone on the nightstand. Right before the call went to voice mail, a slender thumb pressed the Send button. "H'lo?" mumbled a voice thick with sleep. "Hello?" the redhead said, bringing the phone to her ear.

"_Cass?"_

"Uh, yeah, I think so," Cassie Hughes groggily replied. She looked over at the clock, blinking her eyes until the blurry red numbers coalesced into just three digits. "It's three a.m.! What in God's name-"

"_Cass, it's Miley!"_

"Miley?" Cassie sat up, her thoughts beginning to order themselves. "Is everything okay? Did something happen to Lilly or Brooke?"

"Who is it, baby?" yawned Sarah Sweet, sliding an arm across her girlfriend's lap as she scooted closer to Cassie's warm body.

"_The three of us are all okay, Cassie, don't worry. But we've had some... Well, I guess it's sort of an emergency that only two of our mutual friends can deal with."_

"What?" Cassie asked, her face scrunching in confusion. "I'm sorry, I'm still half asleep, Miley."

"_You know! Our '_mutual friends'_? A certain singer and her amazingly gorgeous actress wife, who you met in D.C. that time?"_

"OH!" Cassie blurted out, nearly jumping out of bed in her surprise, an action that wasn't exactly appreciated by the once-again sleeping woman whose head briefly bounced up and then fell down onto the bed with a muffled thump.

"Hey!" Sarah shouted, her voice mostly muffled by the covers.

"Shit, sorry, pookie!" Cassie cooed, leaning down to kiss Sarah's head through her shock of curly honey-auburn hair. "You go back to sleep, it's okay. Just Miley and Lilly." She slid a bathrobe onto her body and hurried out of the bedroom, not bothering to turn on a light as she made her way down the hall. "Okay, I'm where I can talk now," Cassie said as she reached the living room of their modest house.

"_We need to go take care of some business that can't wait,"_ Miley said, picking up smoothly. _"Do you think you could watch Brooke for an hour or two? She's still asleep and'll probably snooze away the whole time we're gone."_

"Sure, sure, I can do that for you," Cassie said, reflexively nodding assent despite the gesture being lost on a phone conversation.

"_Good, 'cause we're pullin' into your driveway right now."_

Cassie peeked out the front window, shifting the curtains to the side to reveal the opalescent Tesla Sedan silently turning into the short driveway. "I'm unlocking the door," Cassie said before hitting the End button on her phone to close the call.

Just moments later the door opened, with Lola Montana carrying a very sleepy baby and Hannah Montana carrying her diaper bag and blanket. They quickly came inside, Lilly carefully handing a rather limp Brooke to Cassie while Miley closed the door. "This must be a big deal if you're not taking time to change on the way," Cassie said to her friends.

"It is," Lilly said with a nod. "She's got two bottles in her diaper bag, plus we put extra clothes and diapers in here just in case."

"Okay, just toss it on the couch over there," Cassie said with a nod. "And get your butts out of here before Sarah wakes up and you two have some serious explaining to do!"

"What do they need to explain?" said Sarah, clad in a large _Sucker Punch_ t-shirt and rubbing sleep out of her eyes as she slowly padded into the living room. She blinked her eyes open and nearly jumped into the air in shock at what she saw in her living room. _"SHIT!"_

Miley and Lilly looked at each other, silently understanding that there really was no time to fast-talk their way out of this one.

"Cassie, what are Hannah and Lola Montana doing in our freaking _living room?" _Sarah said, the pitch of her voice rising into an altogether uncomfortable register as she spoke. "I thought it was Miley who called us just a minute ago!"

"Um, it was," Cassie said with a rather subdued voice. "It's..."

"Oh, for Pete's sake," Miley said, tugging off her blonde wig. "Sarah, I'm Hannah."

Lilly followed her partner's lead, slipping Lola's purple wig off her own head and shaking out her long blonde hair. "And I'm Lola. And Brooke is really Megan. But she doesn't wear a wig. She, uh, sorta needs to grow some hair first before we have to start covering it up."

Seeing confusion writ across Sarah's dumbstruck face, Miley slid Hannah's long, straight blonde wig back on as she said, "Look, we promise we'll catch you up on everything tom—well, later today." She tucked away all of her natural hair that she could feel; she started to turn around but then she felt Lilly's strong, skilled fingers sliding beneath the blonde hair, deftly making sure all of Miley's chestnut curls were safely tucked away. "Thanks, Lilly Bear."

"You're welcome," Lilly replied with a final caress of her fingers across the back of Miley's neck. "Lola's wig goes on _much_ faster than Hannah's, after all."

"We'll be back as fast as we can, I promise," Miley said, giving Cassie and Sarah a quick wave before she and Lilly turned and nearly ran out the front door.

It took several seconds after the door closed for either Sarah or Cassie to move. Finally Sarah slowly walked to the couch and fell into it wearily. "Am I dreaming?" she asked her girlfriend, apprehension obvious in her facial expression. "Or was that real?"

Cassie just grinned in response, lightly patting the snoozing baby in her arms as she rocked her.

Now that they could focus on the upcoming trial, both Miley and Lilly grew silent as they sped toward Beverly Hills. Lilly was driving since she had been to Mikayla's once already, and she kept her eyes on the road as she felt Miley's hand settle on her thigh, bare below the hem of her olive leather shorts.

"You remember how to get there?"

Lilly nodded. "Yeah, it's not that hard to remember. Beverly Hills, if you ever could have guessed it."

"Wow, who'd have thought?" Miley said, snickering once. She looked down at the small flash drive held between the fingers of her right hand, eying it as carefully as she would have a glittering diamond... or a vial of poison. She looked over at her best friend, getting a quick glance back in reply. What Miley saw in her wife's face was a reflection of what she felt in her own at that moment: Confusion. Uncertainty. Apprehension.

Could they use the damning information they had examined just hours ago to force Mikayla into silence without ruining her career, or worse? Or did they _want_ things to go farther, to truly punish her for all the hatred and fury Mikayla had managed to stir up not just at the two of them, but at their families, their friends, their fans, even the entire gay community that Hannah and Lola Montana had become the unofficial spokeswomen for?

Miley sighed. Were they capable of being so cruel, when justice demanded it? Was _she_ capable of being so cold, of utterly ruining another person's life and exposing dark secrets that could never be fully explained away, when defending Lilly demanded it?

Yes. She sure as hell was.

Miley felt a reassuring squeeze on her left hand, causing her smile lovingly at her best friend, the one person Miley could always count on to stand beside her no matter what life or smart-mouthed bitches threw at them. Nothing needed to be said, not with words anyway; their communication had evolved beyond that long ago. So Miley closed her eyes and leaned her head back, letting the late night breeze lazily ruffle Hannah's blonde locks while she drew strength from her wife's loving support. No matter what the next few hours brought, Hannah and Lola would face it together and kick its ass.

As they turned onto Mikayla's street, Miley noticed that there was a level of traffic quite unusual for this time of night in Beverly Hills. "Let me guess," she said, unable to tear her eyes away from the cars parked on the street just outside a large gated driveway. "_That_ would be Mikayla's house," she finished, pointing ahead to the cluster of vehicles down the road from them.

"Right on the first guess," Lilly replied grimly. "I guess it's a good thing that there's not an ambulance or police car here, right?" She smiled wanly as she brought their car to halt.

Miley looked into her wife's brilliant blue eyes, her own expression steely in its focus. "Well, not yet, at least," she said, returning her gaze to the cars ahead of them. "'The night's still young,' Daddy always used to say."

Lilly tried not to laugh. She really did. But the seriousness of Miley's expression coupled with the late hour proved too much for her giggle box to withstand, and she abruptly erupted into a sputtering fit of laughter.

"What the devil is so dang funny?" Miley asked, but by then her own laughter was beginning to bubble forth. The two young women leaned into each other inside the car, hugging tightly as they continued to shiver with laughter born of too much anxiety and too little sleep. It took several seconds before either of them could draw breath without at least a giggle, but they did finally manage to regain their composure.

Lilly ran her fingers through the blonde hair framing Miley's cute face, smiling at how different Hannah's beauty could be from Miley's natural appeal yet still register so powerfully in her very soul. They were two halves of Miley's personality, with understanding both a requirement to truly knowing who Miley Truscott was; just the same, it now took both Lola and Lilly to wholly describe the dynamic woman Lilly Truscott had become. _Two halves to make one whole, just like mine and Miley's souls_, Lilly thought, her mind full of awe and wonder at how the two of them had grown over their twenty-four years. Would a younger Lilly recognize her today, should the two of them ever meet? _Maybe not_, she mused, _but she'd sure as heck recognize Miley._ The leaping sensation in her young heart would make sure of that.

"You're thinkin' romantic thoughts again, aren't you?" Miley said with a slow, deep voice.

Lilly brought her thoughts back to a reality beyond that of the sapphire blue eyes that encompassed her heart, her very soul, in their shimmering depths. "And how do you know that?" she asked with a knowing smile.

Miley leaned in close, bringing their lips within millimeters of contact before she whispered, "'Cause I get all wet when you do." She blindly fumbled for Lilly's free hand, tugging it down the front of her shorts and between her thighs as she added, "See?"

"Mmmm," Lilly moaned as her fingertips brushed against the silky fabric of Miley's panties. She wanted nothing more than to take her wife right then and there, no matter who might be watching, but she limited herself to just a few light, loving strokes of her middle finger. Lilly heard her voice waver as she whispered, "I will _totally_ fuck your brains out when we get some privacy, Hannah Montana, but right now we've got some very important business to finish."

Miley frowned as she felt Lilly's hand retreat from the very warm embrace of her thighs. "But I'm a rock star," she muttered, the pout in her voice not entirely fake at this point. "And rock stars have_ needs!"_

Lilly opened her eyes, meeting Miley's own yearning stare and matching its intensity. "And I promise that I will fulfill each—and—every—one of those needs," she replied, punctuating each pause with a quick kiss on Miley's soft lips, "as soon as we get home, but we can't do it right now, baby."

Miley chanced a quick look at the cars down the street, frowning as she saw heads now turned their way. "Looks like they're talkin' about us now," she said, waving her hand in the direction of the four or five people standing around the assorted cars blocking the driveway's gate.

Lilly eased the accelerator down, sending their electric car silently forward at a creeping pace. As they approached the small group of people standing in front of them, Lilly was surprised that she actually recognized one of the middle-aged women peering intently at them. "That's Mikayla's cook," she said to Miley, her voice quiet but surprise plainly obvious in her inflection. "I met her when I had lunch over here that time."

Lilly rolled the window down and brought the car to a stop just short of the small gathering of people. "Excuse me," she called out to the half-dozen older men and women watching them. "My name's Lola. We, uh, really need to talk to Mikayla tonight."

Lilly wasn't really sure what response she had been expecting, but a pressured jabber of Spanish definitely wasn't it. Mikayla's cook—what _was_ her name?—was excited about something, but Lilly's Spanish was terrible. "I'm sorry, but my Spanish sucks," she finally said with a worried expression. "Um... _muy mal?_ Sucks?"

"She is very worried about Senorita Mikayla," said a thin older man, stepping forward to put a gentle arm around the cook.

_Alejandra_, Lilly thought, the name finally swimming into her consciousness. "Well, our friend Lilly sent us over here to talk to her."

At the sound of her real name, Lilly noticed that Alejandra's demeanor lit up, sparking another torrent of Spanish words, this time directed to the man. After several seconds, he turned back to Lilly. "Alejandra liked Miss Lilly very much when she came to visit with Senorita Mikayla. She tried to tell the senorita that she needed more friends like Miss Lilly, but such things never last. Not with the others Senorita associates herself with. They always tell Senorita that they only want to help her, but in truth they only want to help themselves. They care nothing for the young senorita. We have all tried to tell her that for several months now."

"So all of you work for Mikayla here?" Lilly asked, beginning to see what was going on.

"_Si_," the man replied with a nod. "Or at least we did. Tonight Senorita Mikayla told us that we would be paid for the next year, but that we no longer needed to report for work, starting tomorrow."

"Why would she do that?" Lilly asked, confused.

"We... are not sure. But Ale' thinks the reason is not good."

Alejandra stepped forward and mimed putting a bottle up to her lips and drinking. "Liquor," she said with a heavily-accented voice. "I have seen her take a bottle out of her safe and just look at it, when she thinks no one is watching. She never drinks, she just looks at it for long time, and only when she is very sad. But tonight, there was something in her eyes. More sad than I have ever seen before."

"I've heard enough," Miley said abruptly. She opened the car door and got out, drawing a buzz of whispering and fingers quickly pointing to her. The name _Hannah Montana_ was whispered loud enough for Miley to hear it even at a distance, and she wondered briefly if her celebrity would prove to be a boon or a burden tonight. "We have to talk to her," she said to the man and Alejandra. "I'm not plannin' on hurtin' her, but I don't know exactly what's gonna happen once we get in there. I'm just bein' honest."

A sad smile crossed the olden man's thin, lined face. "Anything would be better than watching Senorita Mikayla throw her future away," he said with a sigh. "She never speaks of it, but the weight of a hard life follows her around, haunting her like _el espectro_. Perhaps you can get through to her, Hannah Montana." He turned to Lilly and added, "And Lola Montana, of course. Senorita Mikayla is not the cruel woman she wants the world to believe, but she is very stubborn and will not listen to any of us. However, I believe the two of you might be just as stubborn as her," he added with a smile and a softness in his eyes that colored his words as anything but insulting.

Lilly smiled back. "Nobody's as stubborn as my wife," she said with a wink in Miley's direction. "So you think you could open that gate and let us in?"

Once the gate had swung open, it just took a few seconds for Lilly to send their electric blue Roadster scooting up Mikayla's long driveway, coming to a halt directly in front of the slate steps leading up to the main entrance. "I'm glad we stopped and got your car, baby," Lilly said to Miley as they got out. "Too many people down there who would've seen us driving Miley's and Lilly's sedan if we'd been driving it."

Miley nodded. She had been thinking much the same thing, when she could take her mind off the pictures and files she and Lilly had spent almost all of the last few hours poring over. The sheer volume of scandals that Mikayla had been involved in over the years was staggering. Miley figured it would take several more hours, possibly days, before she could wrap her head around the trouble that followed Mikayla like a shadow. She took Lilly's hand as they met at the front of the Roadster, and together they turned toward the front door and ascended the steps. Miley reached out and rang the doorbell, with the distant sound of chimes sounding beyond the large, ornately carved wooden door. When no response was forthcoming, Miley rang the doorbell again, then she began pounding on the door with her fist. "Mikayla! Open up! It's Hannah and Lola Montana!"

"You think that's a good idea, hon, to tell her who it is?" Lilly whispered, just a hint of nervousness in her voice. "I mean, she might not ever let us in then."

"Then I'll just kick the damn door down," Miley said, not taking her eyes off of the imposing wooden door.

Lilly was calculating just how that particular contest would go when Miley reached forward and depressed the door latch. "Worth a shot, right?" Miley said, turning her head to look at Lilly hovering at her right shoulder. Before Lilly could reply, Miley pushed inward and was rewarded with the door silently swinging open. "Mikayla?" Miley called out loudly as she carefully stepped inside. Her other foot had just touched the foyer's marble floor when she saw Lilly step up beside her.

_If I ever needed proof that Lilly Truscott loved me, it'd be in just how many of these crazy ideas of mine she's gone along with over the years,_ Miley thought with a mixture of love and awe. Lilly didn't even argue much with her about them at this point. She was just there, always eager to do anything Miley needed.

Miley reached out and took Lilly's hand, finding it exactly where she expected it to be. With a long squeeze, Miley felt strength flow from her partner's hand into her own, traveling up her arm like a electrical current. It surged up her arm, pure strength and support; Miley eagerly drew confidence from Lilly's belief in her, in _them_, to augment her own. She reached behind her and quietly closed the door.

Carefully they crept forward, hanging onto each other's arm as they went. "Mikayla?" Miley called out again, with the same lack of a reply as the first time.

"What's that smell?" whispered Lilly, reflexively wrinkling her nose in disgust. "Smells like wine, or whiskey, or something like that."

Now Miley could smell it, too. "Yeah, I think you're right," she said, her voice just a bit louder than Lilly's whisper. "Maybe she's gettin' good and drunk."

They made their way to the large living room, where they saw a fire crackling in the fireplace but no sign of Mikayla. Lilly steered Miley to the left as they made their way around the room's perimeter, finally entering the kitchen. As their eyes went to the sink, they both gasped before hurrying over the large jumble of bottles scattered both in the sink and in large plastic boxes on the counter. "Wow," was all Miley could get out as they surveyed the assortment of various liquors and spirits. A conservative estimate would have been thirty bottles, all empty.

"Do you think... Do you think she drank all these, hon?" Lilly said, her voice just below the volume of normal conversation.

"I sure as hell hope not," spat a voice from just outside the kitchen. Just a second later Mikayla stalked into the kitchen, four more bottles of liquor in her arms. "If I had drunk all these, I'd be pretty shitfaced by now. And probably on my way to being dead." She set all four bottles on the counter beside the sink, then she opened the smallest one, filled with a brilliant blue liquid, before turning it upside down and placing it directly on the sink's drain. It began to belch forth its contents, the gin gurgling its displeasure at so indignant a demise. Mikayla gathered up two of the other bottles in the sink, both now empty, before she placed them into a partially filled tub of equally empty bottles in the corner of the room and picking up two more full ones. She then turned to regard her two houseguests, looking them up and down coolly before adding, "Of course, you both might want me dead. Sorry to disappoint you if that's the case."

Instead of voicing a reply, Miley and Lilly simply stared coolly at Mikayla, their faces as impassive as cold granite as they held her glare. If Mikayla thought she could intimidate them at this point, she was in for a bitter surprise.

Mikayla kept her gaze trained on the two young women she had conditioned herself to hate over the years. Even now, having worked through so much of her own miserable past, she still found herself disliking them as a default. She glared for a few more moments before sighing loudly. "I kept all this shit downstairs in my big safe for several reasons. First was to remind myself that if I slipped back into drinking or drugs, I was as good as dead. Second, to punish myself. Any time I wanted to I could walk down the steps into the basement, open the safe and take a good look at all the alcohol I could ever drink. And then, after thinking about how each one would taste, I'd have to close the door and lock the safe on them."

She took the last bottles, now empty, out of the deep sink, placing them into the now-full plastic bin on the floor. "But the last reason was that if I ever decided that life sucked more than it was worth living, I'd just fucking drink myself to death."

"Well, that's stupid." The words spilled out of Miley's mouth so naturally that it took her a few seconds before she realized it had been her voice speaking. She turned to meet Mikayla's glare, which was once again seething. _To hell with it. We've danced around long enough. Lilly and I came here tonight to end this, and there's no need for me to play nice anymore._ "I mean, how do you know you wouldn't pass out before you drank enough to kill yourself? You've got a pretty inflated idea of how good you are, you know. In pretty much _everything_."

Long seconds passed as the three women stood as still as statues. It felt like not even the air dared to move as each of them kept her gaze fixed, Mikayla locked in on Miley, Miley and Lilly returning the glare with interest.

"Yeah, well, I never said they were smart reasons," Mikayla finally said as she visibly relaxed before turning around and walking across the kitchen. As she reached the living room, she turned and looked back at Miley and Lilly. "Well? Are you two bitches coming in here or not?" she asked smartly, but it was the hint of a smirk on her lips that threw Miley and Lilly both off-guard. They looked into each other's eyes, each seeing matching curiosity brimming in the brilliant blue eyes that gazed back, then Lilly took Miley's hand as they followed Mikayla into her living room.

They settled onto a large black leather love seat near the crackling fireplace. For a moment Miley tried to consider why someone living in Southern California would have any need for a fireplace, but it _was_ nearly winter, and the nights had been significantly cooler. Not as cold as the mountains of East Tennessee, certainly, but for someone who had probably grown up in the west coast warmth it was likely cold enough to be uncomfortable.

A few feet away, Mikayla sat sideways in a matching leather chair, staring into the dancing flames as she sat quietly. No one said anything for five minutes, then ten. Finally Mikayla turned to look at Miley and Lilly.

If the hint of a smirk or smile had been disarming back in the kitchen, the reflection of the flames off the trails of tears decorating Mikayla's cheeks was positively shocking to the two partners.

"You know what's really fucking sad?" Mikayla asked the two of them, not waiting for an answer. "What's sad is that in this whole fucking town, with everybody I've ever met or worked with, the two of you are the closest things to friends that I have, and you both hate my guts. Is that fucking pitiful or not?" She turned away again, unwilling to meet the spite she expected to see in the pairs of blue eyes staring at her. Even worse was the possibility that it wouldn't be spite she'd see looking back at her. She was sure she couldn't handle pity, not right now.

The crackling flames carried their own conversation as the three women sat quite still. Miley felt Lilly's arm slip around her back, hugging Miley even more tightly. Without even thinking, Miley shifted her position, letting her body lean over until she was draped across Lilly's lap. Lilly smoothly shifted her arms to hold Miley's long, lean torso loosely, dragging the fingers of her right hand across the stretch of bare skin on Miley's belly that her change in position had allowed to show between the bottom of her shirt and the top of her pants. Miley's eyes fluttered closed in sweet delight at her lover's gentle touch, brushing across her tingling skin, lulling her immediately into a sense of peace until Lilly spoke.

"So why _are_ you such a nasty, hateful, spiteful fucking bitch, Mikayla?"

It was the cold, even tone of her wife's normally bubbly voice that made the hairs stand up on the back of Miley's neck. Mikayla could certainly draw out the venom in Lilly like no one else, and Miley began to tense up in the event her nemesis and her best friend might suddenly come to blows. But she made no effort to try and soften the sting of Lilly's scathing words, no attempt to try and sugarcoat the situation.

Surprisingly, Mikayla sobbed once, the sound escaping her throat in a way most unexpected, judging from her expression. She waved her right hand through the air, fingers splayed apart. "I'll tell you why," she said weakly, looking at Lilly with a gaze no longer angry as much as beaten. And she told them.

She told them about her mother dying after her father had thrown her against a dresser in one of his frequent rages. She told them about the beatings she had suffered as far back as she could remember, and of how much she wished she could have had the beatings back when he began abusing her in ways far more terrible. She told them how her older brother tried to protect her whenever he could, and how she felt she owed him a debt she could never entirely repay. She told them how she ran away from home for the final time when Kasey and her mother took Mikayla with them to California, and how she had never heard from her father ever again. Lastly, she told them of losing her one constant in life, her best friend Kasey, and about her new-found revelations about just how she and Kasey had felt about each other.

After nearly an hour, Miley and Lilly were both shivering despite the warmth of the fire. "So... you actually saw her get killed?" Lilly asked, wiping tears from her eyes as she spoke.

Mikayla nodded. Her own eyes were swollen and bloodshot, and she had run out of tears several minutes ago. "I remember running to what was left of her and our car," she said numbly. "That was..." She sighed, closing her stinging eyes and focusing on being in the present as memories threatened to drown her. "That was the last time I ever really prayed and meant it. And then when I got to her and saw her, saw what was left of her, any faith I had in God—any faith I had in _life_, just went away."

Miley tried not to think about what anguish Mikayla must have felt, to have her best friend, her own Lilly cruelly torn away in such a brutal manner. The times Miley had dreamed about losing Lilly, it had taken waking up and wrapping Lilly in her arms to make the cold terror of those nightmares fade away, and even then the remnants of the nightmares would haunt her for days to come. But Mikayla hadn't just dreamed about that devastating loss, she had lived it. And it had consumed any part of her that was still good, still caring, for years. She looked beside her at Lilly, and she saw the same pain she was feeling for Mikayla reflected in her wife's bright blue eyes, brimming with tears. Miley gave Lilly a soft kiss on the lips, using the contact between them to bring a smile to her face. "I know what we need to do," she whispered to Lilly. Lilly nodded in affirmation, as Miley had already known she would.

Miley reached into her pants pocket and withdrew the small black flash drive, holding it up for Mikayla's inspection.

"What's that?" Mikayla asked, her voice raw and yet still apprehensive.

_She knows_, flashed across Miley's thoughts. _Or at least she suspects._ "What do you think it is?" Miley asked, keeping her voice as nonthreatening as possible.

Mikayla thought for long seconds. Her heart was hammering in her chest as she considered different possibilities, the fact that Hannah and Lola Montana felt this was important enough to drive out here from wherever they lived at 3 a.m., and all the turmoil she had put the two of them through over the last year. She realized that among the legion of possible things the slim black object Hannah held, they all had one thing in common. "I think that whatever it is, it's something that I'm not going to like very much," she finally said, more nervous than she had been in years, although she'd die before she let the two of them know that simple fact.

"You're right," Miley said matter-of-factly, and now the compassion and empathy that had been held in her gaze for the last hour had been replaced by a cold ruthlessness. It was not a reassuring development for Mikayla.

Lilly released Miley from her embrace and shifted on the love seat, leaning back against the leather while crossing her toned legs, pointing her knees toward Mikayla. "What my wife's holding is proof. Pictures, scanned documents, receipts, transcripts of text messages, audio recordings of phone conversations, and lots and lots of videos of you doing drugs, getting drunk, completely destroying some restaurant while you're messed up on some kind of pills, spitting and swearing at some kids who try to talk to you, fucking at least two dozen guys and making out with two girls, getting arrested but never actually being charged..." Lilly uncrossed her legs and suddenly leaned forward, her butt barely perched on the edge of the love seat's cushion. "In short, enough shit to blow your career all the way _back_ to Hell."

"It's all on here, Mikayla," Miley smoothly picked up after a pregnant pause. "The parties, the fights, the alcohol, the drugs, the sex."

"Even the abortion."

When those three words spilled off Lola Montana's lips, Mikayla felt as though all the air in the room had been sucked away.

They were right. She was well and truly fucked.

Her career wasn't a concern anymore; she had seen to that herself just hours ago with her pyrrhic resignation from Dyseni. But that wasn't the real danger this information posed. No, the real danger was what this knowledge going public would do to the one person whose opinion of her truly _did_ matter to Mikayla. And so even after sacrificing her music career, her recording contract, her Hollywood lifestyle and her pride, Mikayla still found herself in a no-win situation.

It was funny, really, in a very dark, bleak way. All the precautions she had taken to protect Esmerelda, all the effort she had gone to just to keep Esme's very existence secret from Margot, even the fact that Margot and the two Montana bitches _still_ hadn't connected the last few dots... all of that still couldn't protect Esme from the truth. Not only had her real mother abandoned her at birth, lied to her all of her life and left it to Esme's aunt and uncle to raise her, but Mikayla had killed her first baby, Esme's older sister, because she was too young, too immature, too irresponsible and too fucked-up to be a mother.

And as much as it made Mikayla want to vomit, she had considered doing the same to Esmerelda when she had learned she was pregnant again less than a year later.

Kasey's death right after the abortion had devastated Mikayla, and when she learned she was pregnant again she was in no better shape to be a mother than she had been the first time. But she had hated herself for months over aborting her first pregnancy, and even her bitter heart couldn't go through with that again. So she had run away from Margot, vanishing into the Virgin Islands and not returning until Esmerelda had been born. By that time her brother Peter and his wife Mona had joined her in St. Barts, and it hadn't taken too much money to have Esmerelda officially listed as abandoned by her birth mother (whose name somehow was never officially recorded) and then legally adopted by Petey and Mona. Ever since then, Mikayla had taken absurd precautions to keep Margot from discovering Petey, Mona or Esmerelda. She would rather die than allow Margot's poison to corrupt her daughter, even if the cost of that protection was missing most of Esme's life. At least Esme would have a life worth living, even if she would most likely hate Mikayla once she learned the truth.

And now that bitter truth was being waved in her face. By the two women whom Mikayla had counted as her arch enemies for years. Well, besides Margot, of course, who most likely had given all these lurid secrets to the Montanas. _Pretty good final stab in the back, when you think about it_.

Mikayla sighed. She was tired. Tired of the preening, tired of the partying, tired of the lies, tired of bickering and drama and temper tantums. When was it ever going to end? Probably never at this point.

Part of her was tempted to tell the Montanas to go fuck themselves, to let them drop this bomb on the press and just somehow deal with whatever fallout ensued. But then she thought of looking into Esmerelda's dark eyes, bloodshot and full of tears, and seeing a face that used to beam with love shift into an expression much colder, much darker, as one of Esme's childhood heroes was torn down and revealed as something altogether less heroic. That was something that Mikayla could never allow to happen; no one could ever hurt her daughter like that, not while she still drew breath.

"So," Mikayla finally said, unable to make eye contact with either Hannah or Lola. "Sounds like you've got me pants down and bent over."

"Uh, not a very appealing analogy," Miley said quickly, shaking her head.

"Really?" asked Mikayla, genuinely surprised. "I thought you two were all into lesbian action. Am I not slutty enough for you?"

"You know, Mikayla, just stop it," said Lilly sharply. "Trust us, you're plenty slutty for all three of us, but Hannah and I aren't interested in anyone but each other. It doesn't matter if it's a boy or a girl, we could care less."

"Right on, sister," Miley said with a grin.

"Okay, ignoring the kink in the whole sister-slash-lover vibe," muttered Mikayla. "Getting back to you two blackmailing me, which really isn't that different from how my life has been for too damn long. What are you wanting me to do? Disappear? Make a really humiliating public apology? Donate a bunch of money to your little charity?"

"Really, we'd settle for you just shuttin' your damn mouth," Miley said coldly. "So we can tell you exactly what we're going to do with this."

As Hannah and Lola slowly stood, Mikayla felt her chin tremble. _Oh fuck, oh God, no, not now! Don't make me cry NOW, of all the times!_ But her face refused to heed her pleas, as evidenced by the streams of tears that immediately began to flow from her eyes. She sobbed, her chest burning as she futilely tried to hold everything inside. But she couldn't tear her eyes away from the two women slowly approaching her, their faces equally stoic and reserved, equally beautiful and terrible.

Mikayla's jaw fell open as her sobs intensified. She saw Hannah extend her arm, holding the flash drive up just a foot from Mikayla's face, to make sure she got a long, lingering look at the unraveling of what little she had left in her life.

And then Hannah Montana threw the flash drive into the fire burning beside them.

Mikayla was already unable to speak, but she was so shocked at what she had just seen that she forgot to breathe. She stared at Hannah and Lola, watching Lola reach forward and take Hannah's now-empty right hand, lacing their fingers together as Lola gave her wife a smile that was both warm and proud. Mikayla shifted her gaze to the fire, watching for nearly a minute as the heat and the flames melted and blackened the mass of plastic and metal, twisting it into a useless lump.

"Yes, you've been a total fucking bitch to us, and to our friends, and to our family," Miley said slowly. "But Lola and I understand exactly what livin' in the spotlight can do to someone. We know how it can twist and turn you, and we know how it can break people, too."

"We've never broken, Mikalya," Lola smoothly said, "because we've got each other. We've got our families. But you never had that kind of support."

Miley looked down at Mikayla, the young brunette's face streaked with tears and lines of mascara. "I asked myself somethin' yesterday, Mikayla, somethin' I had never really thought about. I asked myself what would have happened to me if I had lost my best friend when I was really young. And the more I thought about it, the more I could see myself looking like you do today. Angry. Bitter. Pissed off at the world and resentful of anybody's bein' happy, 'cause I'd never let myself be happy ever again."

"Sounds about right," Mikayla said softly.

"Well, now you've got your chance. Margot's got nothin' on you anymore. She can't ever threaten you with any of that ever again, because we took all of it from her. That was it, Mikayla. All of it was on that flash drive." She smiled. "Now you're free."

Mikayla shot up out of the chair so fast that she had her arms around Miley and Lilly before either of them could react. She hugged them both tightly, crying into someone's shoulder for over a minute before she could pull back enough to whisper, "Thank you."

"We don't need to fight each other, Mikayla," Miley said quietly. "We really don't. I don't want your career to flame out. I never did. I think the songs you've released the last few months have been the best of your career, and I think that's because you're singin' them from your heart."

"Yeah, it finally seems like it's good for something," Mikayla said, allowing a smile to cross her face. "Other than keeping me alive, I guess."

Lilly smiled herself. "There's that," she said calmly.

"How do you ask someone to forgive you for all the terrible things you've done to them?" Mikayla asked, looking back and forth between Hannah and Lola. "How _can_ I even ask for that forgiveness?"

Miley's smile never wavered. "The way you just did," she said. "Mikayla, we should never have been fightin'. The three of us know what kind of hell bein' this big of a celebrity can be, and that's somethin' most people are never gonna know. And really, they're better off for it. It's like a battle every day to keep from goin' crazy, to keep enough of yourself safely tucked away somewhere where the cameras and gossip magazines can never find it." She held Mikayla's searching gaze for a few seconds, then she added, "We're sisters-in-arms, Mikayla. We need to be fightin' that fight together instead of fightin' each other."

"Amen," Lilly added, her face shining with pride in her best friend's forgiving heart.

"You got anything you want to add, honey?" Miley said, turning to look at Lilly with a quirky grin on her face.

"Nope, you said it all okay." Lilly rested her head on Miley's shoulder, trying to conceal the grin on her own face.

Mikayla snickered a bit at the easy humor between Hannah and Lola. Maybe one day she could learn to relax and be as forgiving as the two of them, but first she had to learn how to forgive herself. "Thank you both, again," she said, relaxing her grip on the two of them enough to lean back and look them both in the face. "Even after all the shit I did to you both, you—"

Lilly put her hand up, nearly covering Mikayla's mouth. "You're welcome," she said, "but don't make us regret it." Lilly's face was still smiling, but she made no attempt to conceal the fire smoldering in her gaze. "I _will_ protect my wife and our daughter. "

Mikayla nodded. "I know. I still have ribs that remind me of that when a cold front moves in."

"I'm not apologizing for protecting the people I love," Lilly said. "And I never will."

Mikayla nodded. "And you never should," she said. "That's a lesson that I should have learned a very long time ago. I just hope it's not too late to start now."

**Author's Afterword:** Okay, one final chapter to go, where we can wrap up the last few plot threads. It's significantly shorter, and I'm hoping to have it up by tomorrow night. Well, tonight at this point. Thanks for hanging in there and not giving up on me. I love all of you!


	32. Chapter 32: Closure

**Author's Note:** This chapter's theme never fails to send a chill up my spine whenever I hear it. It always goes straight to my heart, making it my absolute favorite Kelly Clarkson song. It's a simple song, but its emotional power is colossal. I've kept it in my mind for Mikayla this entire story, because it so poignantly captures what it means to struggle with addiction. It's not sugarcoated or simplified. It's bleak, heartfelt and honest, and it's exactly what Mikayla has become throughout this story.

Thank you for making through the odyssey this story became. It's hard to believe that I started the first chapter over two years ago, and it's even harder to believe that people have stuck with it this long. That means a lot to me. I hope that I've been able to provide a light of positivity for people who need it, because I always want these stories to lift the reader's spirit when she or he needs it most. Thank you for all the encouragement and support you've given me over the years, because those kind words have lifted _my_ spirits when I needed it. Thank you as well for the prayers and positive energy you've sent to my family, because I know it helped when we needed it most. You're the best!

_Here are my standard disclaimers_: I make no claims on any of Disney's, Miley Cyrus', Emily Osment's or Hannah Montana's trademarks or copyrights, and no infringement is intended on them or those of any other artist or publication mentioned. Be forewarned that this story most certainly will contain femslash. If love and affection between two consenting young adults of the same sex bothers you, I suggest you turn right around and find something else to read. Keep any flames to yourself and remember that what our world needs now is more love and acceptance, not more hate. Reviews are always welcomed and appreciated!

**We Got Nerve **

by Jo K.

Chapter 32: Closure

_I don't know, I could crash and burn but maybe_

_At the end of this road I might catch a glimpse of me_

_So I won't worry about my timing, I want to get it right_

_No comparing, second-guessing, no, not this time_

_Three months and I'm still breathing_

_Been a long road since those hands I left my tears in_

_But I know it's never really over_

-Kelly Clarkson, "Sober"

As she stood on the narrow sidewalk, Mikayla felt her heart pounding uncontrollably. She had left her suitcase back at the hotel, and she briefly considered running back to the cab and leaving before anyone knew she was here. But she knew she couldn't do that. This was something she had put off for far too long.

After a few deep breaths and a hastily whispered prayer, Mikayla focused her gaze ahead and strode to the house's front door. She rang the doorbell, trying not to curse at herself for being this frightened.

The door opened, revealing Mona, Mikayla's sister-in-law. "Mickey!" she said happily. "Wow, you just sent us the text message that you were coming by a few minutes ago! We thought you'd be flying down from L.A. and wouldn't be here until tonight."

Mikayla decided that she needed to be honest. Mona deserved that much. "I... waited to text you because I was afraid I'd back out. That I'd turn around and not go through with this."

"Mickey..." said Mona softly, patting her young sister-in-law's cheek. "It's alright to be afraid. This is going to change some lives."

Mikayla nodded, glancing over Mona's shoulder but not seeing anyone. "Yeah, I just hope it's going to be a change for the better."

"Petey took her down to the store. She wanted to get you a little present of some kind. She has such a kind heart, Mickey."

"Are we really sure she's mine?" Mikayla said, allowing a smile to creep across her lips.

"Yes!" laughed Mona. "Yes, I'm very sure, since I was there when she was born. Nice try."

Just a few minutes after they had gone inside, the slamming of the front door heralded the thunder of a child running through the house. "Aunt Mickey! Aunt Mickey!" Esmerelda squealed as she burst into the living room, not even slowing down as she leaped onto the couch and into Mikayla's arms.

"Oof! You practicing for football or something, Esme?" Mikayla asked as she hugged the now six-year-old tightly.

"Nah!" laughed Esme, wriggling from Mikayla's tickling fingers. "Just happy to see you!"

"Well, I'm sure happy to see you, little kangaroo."

"I'm not a kangaroo! I'm a girl!"

Mikayla looked over Esme's shoulder and caught her brother's eye. Peter nodded to her and gave her a smile that was most likely meant to reassure her she was doing the right thing, then he and Mona stepped out of the room.

_No reason to put this off._ "Esme," Mikayla said slowly, "we need to talk about something really important."

At that statement, Esme stopped writhing around and looked up at Mikayla, her pale green eyes abruptly shining in the afternoon light. "Okay," she said, sitting up and turning to face Mikayla.

Mikayla hesitated just seconds before she spoke. "Esme, I'm about to tell you something that you might not believe right away, but it's true, I promise you. After I tell you, I'll explain all about it, okay?"

Esme simply nodded, her eyes fixed on Mikayla's face.

"Esme... I'm your mother."

The pause was no more than two seconds, had there been some way to time it, but for Mikayla those two seconds could have been an eternity. Then Esme smiled and shot forward, wrapping Mikayla in her embrace as she shrieked, "Mommy mommy mommy! Mommy!"

Mikayla hugged her daughter tightly, and as she did she felt years of regret, years of recriminations and second-guessing, years of fear boil away in the pure flame of a child's love. She felt tears pouring from her eyes, but she never wanted to let Esme go, not ever again, even to wipe her eyes. "I love you, Esmerelda," she choked out. "I always loved you, but I knew I wasn't a good mother for you back then. That was I why I asked Peter and Mona to take care of you."

"I'm glad you finally told me," whispered Esmerelda, squeezing so tightly that Mikayla wondered just how much force it took to dislocate a shoulder.

"I'm glad I did too, kangaroo."

"I've been waiting so long for you to tell me!"

Mikayla froze momentarily. She shifted so she could see Esme's face. "What... What did you just say?" she asked, not quite believing what she had just heard.

Esme grinned, the grin of a child who had been caught with her hand in the cookie jar. "Well, I said... that I had been waiting so long for you to tell me."

"That's what I thought you said," Mikayla said softly. "How— How long... have you known?"

"Um, I don't know. For a year or two."

Mikayla was incredulous. "They told you?" she asked, white with shock.

Esme shook her head. "Uh uh. And I never told them I knew who my mommy was, either. We were keeping a secret, after all."

Mikayla's head was whirling as she tried to make sense of the situation. "So..." She looked at the empty doorway, then back at Esme. "How did you know?"

"My imaginary friend told me," she whispered. "She told me that I couldn't tell anyone but you, and only after you told me first. She had me promise. She said that when you were ready to be a mommy, you would tell me yourself, and she was right!"

"She sounds very smart," Mikayla said. "But she must be smart, to be your friend."

"Uh huh!" She hugged Mikayla again. "So are you going to move back here, Mommy?"

Hearing that for the very first time sent cold chills sliding down Mikayla's back. "That sounds funny, doesn't it?" she asked Esme.

"Nope," replied the little girl. "I think it sounds just right." Her face became apprehensive suddenly. "Are you wanting me to stay here with Uncle Petey and Aunt Mona a little longer?"

"I—"

"I will if you want me to, Mommy. I'll be okay."

"Oh, baby, no, I didn't mean that at all!" Mikayla felt herself start to tear up again at the disappointment in Esme's glimmering eyes. "I just wasn't expecting that question just yet, that's all." _ I've sure as hell thought about it, though. All the way out here._

"Are you thinking about it now?"

Mikayla smiled. "Yes, I am. I don't think I want to move back here, Esme. I really didn't have many good memories in this town. How about you? Would you like to move to Beverly Hills with me?"

The piercing shriek was nearly enough to deafen Mikayla. "Whoa whoa whoa!" she stammered out, clapping her hands over her ears in a belated attempt to spare them from the acoustic trauma. "So I guess that's a yes?"

"Yes yes YES YES YES _YES!"_

"Okay," Mikayla said happily. "Then you need to get your suitcase and pack some clothes and the toys you want to take with you. We can't take everything today, so just get what you've got to have. I'll take you shopping tomorrow and get some new clothes for California."

Esme grabbed Mikayla again and hugged her tightly. "I love you, Mommy," she said, whispering the words as solemnly as if they were a prayer. And maybe they were.

"I love you too, Esmerelda." Mikayla felt a warmth flood her body from the contact, and she knew that this was a feeling more amazing than anything drugs or alcohol had ever given her. She would never be free of her memories of what she had done, and she could live with that. She needed to remember, if only to ensure that she never fell into a trap like that ever again. But the hold that alcohol and drugs had possessed on her was infinitesimal compared to this love, and she knew that this love gave her a strength that she had foolishly belittled and made fun of for years. Now she knew better.

As Mikayla brought her thoughts back to the real world, she heard Esme mumbled something over her shoulder. "What was that, Esme?" she asked happily.

"Oh, I was telling Kasey that she was right, and telling her thanks."

Mikayla felt time stop, or at least the flow of blood to her brain. It took her precious seconds to pull enough air into her lungs to speak. "Wha... What did you say, Esme?"

Esme sat up, lifting her chin off its resting place on Mikayla's shoulder. "I said I was telling Kasey she was right. She's my imaginary friend."

_Oh God. Oh my sweet God. There's no way. No fucking way. It's just a coincidence, it has to be._

"She told me that she would look out for me until you were ready to be my mommy." Esme smiled and blushed slightly before she added, "She's sitting right behind you, Mommy."

Mikayla whirled around, but there was nothing to be seen. No one was there, no matter how badly she wished it.

"You're looking right at her, Mommy. She's smiling at you."

Mikayla's body shook with a sob that seemed to bubble up out of nowhere. She reached out, feeling more than a bit silly at trying to touch something that wasn't there, but she couldn't help herself. "I miss you, Kasey," Mikayla whispered, so softly that she herself could barely hear it.

"She says that she loves you, Mommy."

Mikayla smiled, not caring if her tears ran into her the corners of her mouth. "I love you too, Kase. I know now that I always did." She closed her eyes. "Thank you for being in my life, and for not giving up on me."

Esme hugged Mikayla from behind. "She says that she's proud of you," Esme said as she kissed the back of Mikayla's head. "And I'm proud of you too, Mommy."

Mikayla reached over her shoulder and hugged Esme's head to her as she lowered her head and wept quietly, the tears falling drop after drop onto the old green couch.

Halfway across the country, Margot Walters put her car into reverse and backed out of her garage. She'd be upgrading cars very soon, and she wasn't really sure what she'd do with this old BMW. Her mind was considering the possibilities as she eased down her driveway; she didn't even register the truck parked across the mouth of her driveway, blocking her in, until she was nearly upon it.

"What the hell?" she said out loud as she threw her car in Park. She climbed out, slamming the car door behind her. "Move your fucking car!" she yelled at the black Silverado truck as she marched toward it. The windows were tinted just enough to hide the details of the occupants, but the driver's door opened as Margot approached.

"Hello, Margot," said a familiar voice, cold and dangerous. "So nice to see you again."

"What the fuck are you doing, Kittrell?" Margot spat angrily.

"I'm parking my truck here in the public road," Jen Kittrell replied, leaning against the side of her vehicle. "You going somewhere?"

"None of your business, bitch. I'm done with you."

"Yeah, well, I'm not done with you," Jen replied as she pushed off the truck and stood up. "You see, when we checked that hard drive you sold us, we found lots of stuff on it, just like you promised."

"And you're mad that it actually had what I told you it done? Are you retarded or just stupid? Oh, maybe that's a question I need to ask your little teeny-bopper bosses."

Jen walked forward a few steps. Margot did the same, until the two of them were just feet apart.

"No, that's not the problem," Jen said, showing no obvious response to Margot's smart mouth. "The problem is, there was some more stuff on there that we _weren't_ expecting. Stuff that we sure as hell didn't want to see."

Margot felt a rivulet of sweat slither down the small of her back. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said, trying to suppress the urge to shiver.

"Sure you do," said Jen calmly, her face devoid of any expression other than irritation. "Because you were in most of the videos we found."

Margot turned to walk away, her heart racing, but Jen continued. "How old was she the first time you raped her, Margot? Fourteen? Fifteen? Had she passed out at a party and you brought her home, or had you planned drugging her from the beginning? Huh?" Jen quickly walked forward, her heels clicking smartly on the concrete driveway. "No wonder you were always there to clean up her mess when she got fucked up, right? So you could take her home and fucking _molest_ her?"

Margot spun around and swung a punch at Jen's face, but it never came close to connecting. Jen slid to the side, dodging the awkward blow, then she drove a vicious punch into Margot's gut, doubling the much larger woman over. Margot gasped for breath but weakly swung her arm at Jen, glancing against her thigh. Jen simply ignored the weak blow and drove a hard right cross against the side of Margot's head, knocking her to the ground. "Did it feel good, Margot, having your way with her while she couldn't fight back? I bet you liked to watch your little movies over and over again, didn't you?" She stepped back to begin a kick, only to have someone firmly grip her shoulder.

"That's enough, Jen."

Jen whirled around, her arm already drawn back to deliver another punch. "Don't do that to me, Oken, not in the middle of a fight, unless you want your face caved in!" she said, her voice deep and harsh.

"She's down," Oliver said. "If she tries to get back up before I get her handcuffed, then feel free to put her down again."

Jen turned to look at Margot, sprawled clumsily on her knees. "I hope you try it, bitch," she hissed. "I've got lots more payback for you right here. I'm not some teenage kid you can drug and rape."

"Margot Walters," Oliver said as he moved behind the larger woman, "you're under arrest. Multiple counts of sexual assault of a minor, which might be upgraded to full-blown rape once the D.A. sees the videos, multiple counts of production of pornography involving a minor, plus anything else we can come up with."

"Can you charge her for being a fucking bitch?" asked Jen.

Oliver helped Margot to her feet; it seemed she was in a daze, as she meekly complied. He turned to look at Jen. "If I did, I'd have to charge you too," he said.

Jen glared at him for a few seconds, then she smiled and laughed. "You're so much more fun now that you're a cop," she said, walking over and ruffling his short hair. "And I really can't believe I just said that."

"Yeah, well, you're much more fun now that you're all respectable and everything."

"Watch your mouth, Oken."

"Okay, sorry."

Oliver reached beneath his suit jacket and pulled his radio out. "Okay, we're ready for a black and white. Suspect is in custody. Ready for transport back to central processing." He listened for the scratchy reply, then he replaced the radio on his belt.

Jen saw that Margot was staring at her, hatred in her eyes. "What's the matter? Sad you got caught?"

"No," Margot replied evenly. "Just thinking about how many lawyers I want to hire to go after you personally after this."

"Well, you won't be hiring any with that ten million dollars," Jen replied confidently.

"I've already deposited it, you moron."

Jen just grinned in reply. "Tell her, Oliver."

Oliver looked Margot in the face. "Have you ever heard of Masha's Law, Margot?" Not waiting for a reply and really not expecting one anyway, he continued. "It's named after a girl who had been molested by the family who adopted her from overseas, using her to make child pornography for several years. The law was put in place several years ago to keep predators like you from making any profit off their victims. It lets us seize any and all money made from selling media of any type involving underage minors."

"Including hard drives," Jen added helpfully. "So your ten million dollars is going bye-bye."

"You're full of shit!" Margot yelled, twisting so quickly that she nearly knocked Oliver over.

"Hey!" he yelled, grabbing her arm to stop her. "No, we're not full of shit. Money seized under Masha's Law is handed over to the victims who were exploited by those making it."

"So not only do you lose that ten million, it goes directly to the girl you raped for years without her ever knowing it. Mikayla gets it all. I wonder what she's going to do to you when she learns about all this?"

Margot spun to charge Jen, but Jen's fist connected with her left jaw before she had even turned around. The heavier woman crumpled to the concrete as if her legs had been cut out from under her, trapping Oliver's foot beneath her.

"Oh, that's just great!" Oliver shouted as he jerked his foot, trying to free it from beneath Margot's frame. Jen started laughing wildly at the sight, clapping her hands in delight.

"Holy shit, I didn't even plan that!" Jen shouted happily. "That was fucking _beautiful!"_

With a final tug, Oliver finally pulled his foot out from under Margot. Thankfully his shoe came out with his foot, although it popped off as soon as they were free. He turned to look at Jen, who was holding her legs together as she laughed with her entire body. "Okay, not a word of this to the two of them," he said. Jen mimed pulling a zipper across her lips, but her eyes still shone with mirth.

Several minute later, after two other officers had arrived and held load Margot into their cruiser, Oliver and Jen stood between their cars. "Thanks again, Oken," Jen said. "You really came through for all of us."

Oliver smiled. "Hey, you were the one who found this stuff and brought it to our attention. And the district attorney knows that you weren't trying to buy anything like that, even if you won't tell us what you really _were_ buying on that hard drive."

"Hey, you saw that contract. I'm not allowed to divulge any details about the transaction itself. I know, because I wrote it. I just appreciate her not trying to press any charges against me for having it at all."

"You're allowed to report a crime, Jen, and you're allowed to hand evidence over to us. But I'll tell her you said thanks."

Jen took a step forward and hugged Oliver, patting him on the back before letting him go.

"Wow, not used you... hugging people," Oliver said.

"Blame my bosses," Jen replied. "They get pretty damn affectionate, if you know what I mean."

Oliver laughed. "Yeah, I think I know what you mean. Hey, you and Lee coming over to watch some of the game tomorrow?" he asked as he walked to his car.

"I think I can get his lazy ass out of the house for a while," Jen said cheerily. "You think you can keep your pregnant wife from puking all over the place?"

Oliver smiled. "Yeah, I think she can mange that for a few hours."

"Thanks again, Oken. They said you were a good friend, and you've sure as hell proved it."

"You're welcome, Jen. Thanks for looking out for them. As far as I'm concerned, Miley and Lilly don't ever have to know about any of this."

"About any of what?"

Oliver shook his head, still smiling. "See you tomorrow Jen."

"...and that's how I found out that Miley was Hannah Montana," Lilly said, watching the rapt expression of interest on Sarah's face. "Now, it took a bit longer for me to figure out that I was in love with her."

"Yeah, you shoulda figured that one out sooner!"

Lilly turned to her wife and lightly smacked her on her back leg. "Hush, you,' she said teasingly. "My story."

Miley leaned in and kissed Lilly, much to the amusement of Cassie and Sarah, who immediately mimicked the affectionate gesture with each other. "_Our_ story," Miley corrected her best friend.

Lilly smiled. "Miley, it's always been our story. And it always will be."

Miley sighed happily as she leaned against Lilly.

"So whatever happened with Mikayla?" asked Cassie. "You said that you had to drop Brooke off this morning to go deal with her, so what happened?"

Miley and Lilly looked at each other, teasing looks on their faces. "You tell them," said Miley.

"No, you!"

"Uh uh. It was your idea."

Lilly sighed. "Darn it. Can't argue with you when you're right."

"Doesn't stop you from tryin', sometimes."

Lilly narrowed her eyes at Miley. "We'll discuss that at another time, Mrs. Miley Truscott." She turned to look as Cassie and Sarah again. "Well, Mikayla had to sign some contract when she left Dyseni that prevents her from recording any new music or releasing any albums for five years. Or something like that."

"Wow, so is she going to leave Los Angeles?" asked Sarah.

Lilly shook her head. "No, she found another job. It seems that a certain _extremely_ hot pop star was needing a new dance choreographer."

"And Mikayla's got some moves," Miley added happily. "So she gets a new job and gets to stay here. With her friends."

"All two of us," Lilly added. "But hey, it's a start."

**Author's Afterword:** Wow. Done.

I'm not really sure what to say here, other than thank you to all my readers for coming along on this journey with me. I love you all! I hope I'll see you before long. Be good to each other, okay?

Jo


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